First migrants of 2024 cross English Channel

The group arrived in a Border Force boat

The first people seen crossing the English Channel in a small boats in 2024 have arrived on Kent shores, nearly a month after the last arrivals.

A group believed to be migrants were seen arriving in Dover after being picked up in a Border Force vessel on Saturday morning.

Arrivals have not been recorded since 16 December, according to the Home Office, due to poor weather conditions potentially preventing crossings.

A Home Office spokesperson said: "Our priority is to stop the boats."

Previously there were 26 days of no crossings to the UK recorded up until 11 January.

This was the longest gap in small boat arrivals for five years.

The provisional annual total for 2023 - 29,437 - is down on the record 45,774 crossings for the whole of 2022.

Last year's total is still the second highest annual on record, above the figure for 2021 (28,526).

The Home Office said it had "taken action to crackdown on vile people smuggling gangs, deter migrants from making dangerous crossings and, alongside our French counterparts, intercept vessels".

"This relentless action reduced crossings by 36% last year, which saw similar weather conditions to 2022, and more than 26,000 attempts were prevented," a spokesperson said.

Follow BBC South East on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail].