Shadow home secretary Chris Philp says the right to protest is a "fundamental part of our democracy" but it "should never be violently exercised" or "cause serious disruption to other people".

Philp says this should be a "wake-up call" for the government, and claims "millions and millions of people up and down this country... feel angry as well".

Philp recounts a trip to the beaches of northern France a few weeks ago, where he says he watched a dinghy with around 100 people on it, while the French authorities "stood by".

He says that officers "did nothing" because, he says, they were under order not to intervene.

"So long as that continues to happen, these crossings will continue as well."

Responding, Jones says small boat crossings have declined by 43% this year.

She says she hopes he can learn more about how the government's deal with the French of "payment by results".

"£110 million of what we give to the French is dependent on them delivering results, which is why we are seeing an improvement," she says.

Jones says the use of large boats with over 100 people crammed on board is a "clear cause for concern".

She says the gangs transporting migrants are "never going to go quietly".

She says "they are responding to the impact our work is having and we will adapt in turn" with enforcement in partnership with France.

Jones says the government's priority will "always be the safety of British people", and it will continue to bear down on small boat crossings, while working with police forces to maintain order on the streets.

"While we must protect our ancient right to free speech, what we will never tolerate is the disruption of people's daily lives or the intimidation of our communities," she adds.

Image source, Parliament TV

Jones says she has spoken to policing partners today, adding that work is ongoing to establish any lessons and ensure relevant intelligence is shared "at pace" across the law enforcement system.

She says peaceful protest is a "fundamental part of democracy" and must be defended, but adds that citizens also have a right to go about their daily lives.

There can be "no excuse" for threatening behaviour or serious disruption, she says, adding that those who "cross the line from peaceful protest to illegality" will face the "full force of the law".

She says the government condemns the "intimidating and thuggish behaviour" shown by some this weekend.

"None of this is to minimise the valid concerns that law-abiding people have when they see vile criminal gangs exploiting the nation's generosity," she says.

Image source, House of Commons

Policing minister Sarah Jones says that at around 07:30 on Saturday, about 150 people descended on the Port of Dover, many of them wearing face coverings. Kent Police "deployed rapidly" and there were no arrests made, she tells MPs.

Then, in the early afternoon on Sunday, a boat carrying approximately 120 people reached British waters and were directed by the RNLI to Eastney Marina, Portsmouth.

At about 20:00, over 200 protesters arrived at the harbour intending to block coaches that were due to take those arriving for processing, she says.

Police used a dispersal notice to "ensure public safety", while "officers were forced to use batons and pava spray to maintain order in the face of some aggression".

Policing minister Sarah Jones has just started speaking in Parliament after immigration protests in Dover and Portsmouth.

You can watch live at the top of the page, and we'll bring you updates here too.

Simon Jones
Reporter, BBC South East Today

There were about 120 people on board the dinghy that headed towards Portsmouth this weekend, the BBC understands.

Information from the French authorities had previously indicated there were about 140 people on board.

We're expecting policing minister Sarah Jones to speak in Parliament soon about the weekend's protests in Dover and Portsmouth.

She'll also take questions from MPs on the events, and you'll be able to watch live at the top of the page when proceedings begin shortly.

We'll bring regular text updates of the key moments here too.

Image source, Getty Images

Rachel Millward, the deputy leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, has condemned the anti-small boats protests seen over the weekend.

Speaking to BBC Two's Politics Live, she said: "These are not British values and not something we want to see."

She said the "crisis of small boats" needs to be sorted out by "providing legal, safe, managed routes for people who are fleeing genocide, war, persecution".

"It is horrifying for me that the first experience they might have on British shores is such an aggressive one," she added.

Tracking vessels that were monitoring Portsmouth migrant boatpublished at 15:57 BST

15:57 BST

By Barbara Metzler

BBC Verify has been using ship-tracking websites to monitor activity in the English Channel at the time the migrant boat made its crossing on 6 September.

We can’t track the boat but we have been monitoring the rescue vessels which the French authorities say were involved in monitoring it.

At around 03:00 BST on Sunday morning we can see four French vessels meeting up in the Baie de la Seine - where the boat had been sighted - and moving north into the English Channel towards UK waters.

Around 06:40 their paths split and two vessels - Amiral de Tourville and Abeille Liberté - continue moving north together.

Then, close to 12:25, the two French rescue vessels enter the area of the Channel where UK authorities have responsibility for conducting search and rescue operations.

On the UK side, two RNLI lifeboats were dispatched from the Isle of Wight - from Bembridge at 10:11 and Yarmouth shortly afterwards.

At around 12:34 all four vessels come into close vicinity about halfway across the Channel, with the Yarmouth lifeboat and Amiral de Tourville coming particularly close.

At 13:00 both RNLI lifeboats head towards the UK and arrive at 17:11 in the Langstone Channel near Portsmouth.

Image source, Reuters

Portsmouth City Council leader Steve Pitt says coaches of migrants were eventually able to leave the city early on Monday morning for processing after Sunday's protests.

The Liberal Democrat also criticises the decision to allow people to be escorted into Portsmouth in the first place.

"The council wasn’t asked about the decision to land the lifeboats in Portsmouth. This was entirely a decision taken by UK Border Force, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and the Home Office," he says.

“It was a completely unsuitable location to bring the boats ashore, this entire situation was avoidable and has brought needless disruption to our city."

As a result, he says the Home Office has "serious questions to answer" over a "lack of planning, inconsistent decision-making and ultimately, poor judgement".

"They put people at risk. This cannot happen again," he says.

The BBC has contacted the Home Office for comment.

Image source, Reuters

As coastguard boats carrying migrants arrived in Portsmouth on Sunday night, protesters gathered firstly to attempt stop them landing, then to prevent buses carrying migrants from leaving for processing centres.

Here's how events have unfolded since:

• A Home Office update confirmed that 625 migrants on eight boats were brought to shore at Dover and Portsmouth on Sunday
• A police investigation is underway to identify offenders after police, coastguard and border force vehicles were damaged and a small number of officers were treated at the scene of protests for injuries
• Meanwhile Hampshire Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones says that while the protest in Portsmouth was "largely" peaceful, the scenes were a "wake-up call to the government" that "British people are fed up with the lack of control of our borders"
• One local witness says the protest has left her feeling "genuinely unsettled", while another calls them "an absolute shock and a real worry"
• Events in Portsmouth followed a road blockage in Dover's port on Saturday; our UK correspondent has more on the man who appears to be behind the demonstrations - an activist known to supporters as Danny Tommo
• Minister Emma Reynolds condemned "thuggish" and "intimidating" behaviour that she saw displayed but accepted people have "legitimate concerns" about immigration
• The number of people crossing the English Channel by small boat has fallen by 43% in the year between 1 January and 5 September 2026 compared to the same period in the previous year, but thousands still arrive in the UK each year

Simon Jones
Reporter, BBC South East Today

The Home Office has just released the latest figures on small-boat crossings: 625 people were brought to shore at Dover and - unusually - Portsmouth yesterday.

They made the journey in eight boats.

We know there have been further arrivals today - with around 140 people on two boats getting to Dover in the early hours before the weather changed and became much windier.

Today's numbers won't officially be confirmed until tomorrow by the government.

More than 17,000 people have reached the UK on small boats so far this year. It's a significant number, but down considerably on the same period last year.

Simon Jones
Reporter, BBC South East Today

625 migrants on eight boats were brought to shore at Dover and Portsmouth yesterday, according to Home Office figures.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage says the country is on the edge of "serious civil disturbance", and that governments have "failed us completely and utterly".

In a video shared on X, he says "people wearing masks, dressed up in a similar type uniform to a paramilitary is not going to solve this problem," and adds that there is a "marked difference" between events in Portsmouth last night, and scenes in Dover on Saturday.

He finishes: "Peaceful protest: good. Uniforms and masks: bad. Voting is the only way we get a solution."

Are small boats carrying more migrants?published at 14:18 BST

14:18 BST

By Aidan McNamee

Small boats crossing the Channel carried an average of 77 people last month, the highest figure on record.

Despite dipping toward the end of last year, the number of people per boat has generally risen year-on-year, with the average having more than doubled in the past five years.

Last month, a record 230 people arrived in the UK on a single boat. As British and French authorities have stepped up efforts to prevent crossings, people smugglers have increasingly turned to larger vessels known as "mega-dinghies" which can carry far more passengers than traditional inflatables.

For the latest data on Channel crossings and migration to the UK, visit BBC Verify’s migration tracker.

Image source, Reuters

While "nothing excuses either violent or disruptive protest", the scenes in Portsmouth overnight show that "people are genuinely angry at the government's failure to stop the boats", according to the shadow home secretary.

Speaking to broadcasters in Westminster, Chris Philp says arrivals into the UK are now on "mega-dinghies with one or two hundred illegal immigrants entering our country with the French doing nothing to stop it".

"Our government is failing," says Philp, who adds that a "radically different approach is needed".

"Leave the European Convention on Human Rights so small boat migrants could be immediately deported on arrival and the crossings would pretty quickly stop," he says.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary says an investigation is ongoing to "identify offenders responsible for any assaults to officers, criminal damage to vehicles or other criminal offences" following last night's protests in Portsmouth.

A number of police, Coastguard and Border Force vehicles were damaged during the protest and a small number of officers were treated at the scene for injuries, but no one was seriously injured, the force says.

“Violence and criminal damage have no part in peaceful protest,” it adds.

The force also says Border Force has advised "individuals from the boat have been transported outside of Hampshire for processing".

Image source, PA Media

Simon Jones
Reporter, BBC South East Today

Kent Police have defended their handling of the protest in Dover on Saturday, that saw people wearing masks and dressed in black block roads and bring traffic to the Port to a standstill.

Officers have admitted they did not know about the protest in advance, leading to accusations of a failure in intelligence-gathering.

Kent Police Assistant Chief Constable Nigel Brookes says in a statement: "It is important we distinguish between conduct we find objectionable and disruptive, and conduct which constitutes a criminal offence."

He says the only offence police are currently investigating was damage to a road.

He adds: "We will examine the intelligence process, but it is important to note that we do not as a matter of course monitor peaceful protesters, and their political viewpoints are not taken into consideration."

The police say they are disappointed there was so much disruption in the town, but insist they had engaged with those causing it to bring the demonstration to an end by lunchtime.

Eastney Landing ferry port in Portsmouth is much quieter today than Sunday evening.

This morning, a police cordon remains in place around a police car at the port which has its windscreen smashed.

Photos show officers patrolling on a rigid inflatable boat off the coast of Eastney Beach, while a pile of discarded lifejackets can be seen piled up on the side of the road.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, PA

Image source, Reuters

UK and French aircraft tracked during migrant boat crossingpublished at 12:34 BST

12:34 BST

By Rob Corp

BBC Verify has been looking at flight-tracking websites to monitor activity over the English Channel yesterday around the time the migrant boat was crossing.

Flight-tracking websites show that a French Securite Civile helicopter left Cherbourg shortly before 09:00 BST on Sunday and headed north-east across the Channel. Tracking data is incomplete but the French aircraft flew north-east until it was about 39km (24 miles) off the French coast.

Tracking was intermittent before data showed the helicopter returning to Cherbourg just before 09:30.

Shortly after 11:00 a HM Coastguard King Air aircraft was tracked taking off from Newquay airport in Cornwall before heading east to the Channel. It arrived over a point approximately midway between the Isle of Wight and the coast of Normandy at 11:49.

This aircraft flew various circular and oval orbits over the Channel and was joined by a Coastguard helicopter at 12:52. At 13:38 the helicopter flew towards the Isle of Wight before landing at Lee-on-Solent just before 14:00.

At 13:59, 23km (15 miles) south of Ventnor, the Coastguard King Air completed its last orbit and flew west back towards Cornwall.