Mega dinghy sparks fresh concern as almost 900 migrants arrive in Andy Burnham's first week: 'It's a national security threat!'

This week a 'mega dinghy' was spotted in the Channel, carrying as many as 165 people

Britain's growing illegal migrant crisis has become a "national security threat" as "mega dinghys" are now being used to cross the Channel, Mike Jones has claimed.

Speaking to GB News, the political commentator declared that the surging number of Channel crossings is not only a threat to the taxpayer but also to the Treasury.

Close to 900 small boat migrants have arrived in Prime Minister Andy Burnham's first week in Downing Street.

GB News can exclusively confirm that hundreds more are arriving today, the fourth day of illegal crossings as migrants take advantage of a run of good weather.

Reports have also revealed that Iran has been "exploiting Britain's small boats crisis" to send "agents and operatives" into the country via the Channel.

Discussing the latest crossings using a "mega dinghy", Mr Jones told GB News that the situation is getting "hugely out of hand".

He said: "The Channel migrant crisis isn't just a threat to the Treasury and the British taxpayer, it's a national security threat first and foremost.

"You're going to have criminals and chancers on those boats, but you're also going to have hostile states planting their own people on there as well, and it doesn't surprise me at all that bad actors on the international stage are exploiting this crisis to get spies and various bad actors into British territory. It's entirely predictable."

Mr Jones criticised UK Border Force and the Government's inability to protect the country's borders.

He said: "The British Governments doesn't have the legal tools to deport these people. At the end of the day, we've restricted our own sovereignty.

"We've got the Human Rights Act, so if you come from a third world country or a country that's distressed in some way, your asylum application is going to be approved.

"The fundamental problem is that we can detain people, but we can't deport them.

"And at the end of the day, Iran is just exploiting this loophole, and until the legal architecture is actually changed, we're going to face many more of these problems in the future."

The commentator admitted he is "not optimistic" that Prime Minister Andy Burnham will tackle the crisis and reduce small boat numbers.

He said: "In terms of changing the Human Rights Act, I am not bullish or optimistic that Andy Burnham will do anything on that front. I think it's too politically toxic for him within the Labour Party.

"He might toy with the idea of disapplying certain articles of the Human Rights Act to immigration policy, but Andy Burnham isn't going to take the robust action that the Tories and Reform UK wants."

Mr Jones suggested that Mr Burnham will want to "do a deal with the French" in the future and work with Emmanuel Macron's successor.

He concluded: "I believe Andy Burnham is probably hoping that if he wins re-election, he'll be able to do a deal with Macron's successor in the Elysee.

"That's why I think he'll be hoping that he can actually do a deal with one of the nationalist parties there.

"But in the in the short term, Burnham is not going to try to stop the boats or solve this.

"He may reopen a detention centre, he may issue a few more visa bans, there'll be a few cosmetic changes here and there.

"But Burnham will want to win the re-election first before he considers anything more radical."

A Home Office spokesman said: "Our first priority is national security. There are stringent security checks for small boat arrivals.

"Those identified as a threat will be detained immediately and we will do everything in our power to remove them at the earliest opportunity.

"On top of these robust processes, we have fast-tracked a change in the law to outlaw support for the IRGC, equipping the police and intelligence services with more powers to disrupt those working on their behalf, and making it easier to prosecute them."