The Home Office outlined plans to tackle illegal immigration, including the appointment of 100 new intelligence officers to target people-trafficking gangs.
Ministers have also promised a “huge surge” in the number of flights illegally removing failed asylum seekers and others in the UK.
As part of its plan, the government says it will reopen immigration removal centers in Hampshire and Oxfordshire, adding 290 beds.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said she wanted to introduce a “better-regulated” system to replace the “chaos that have marred the system for too long”.
“Labour is not serious about tackling people smugglers or stopping the boats,” the Conservatives said.
Shadow home secretary James Wise welcomed more resources for the National Crime Agency and increased deterrence capacity but said the government's plan was “not ambitious enough”.
“Their moves to repeal our ban, effective amnesty for thousands of illegal immigrants, and failure to hire the head of their phantom Border Command barely scratch the surface.”
Steve Smith, head of refugee charity Care4Calais, said: “The only way to stop smuggling and save lives is to create safer routes for people to seek asylum in the UK – that's what the new government needs to focus on.”
In recent years there has been growing concern about the number of migrants and asylum seekers arriving in the UK through illegal means, particularly in small boats across the English Channel.
More than 19,000 people have crossed the canal in small boats so far this year – a 10% increase on last year but a drop from a peak of more than 21,000 in the same period in 2022.
The previous Conservative government tried to reduce the numbers through its Rwandan program to deport migrants to the East African country.
Upon being elected in July, the Labor government immediately scrapped the scheme, branding it a “gimmick”.
Instead, it said it wanted to focus on cracking down on criminal gangs organizing people to create crossings and speeding up the process for those without legal rights to stay in the UK.
The government has now announced that 100 new special investigation officers and detectives will be assigned to the National Crime Agency (NCA) to “disrupt criminal smuggling gangs and prevent dangerous boat crossings”.
Officers will work across the UK and Europe, some undercover and others targeting the supply of inflatable boats and equipment.
The NCA currently has around 70 active investigations into people-trafficking and trafficking groups.
The government says it will rehire workers to take back failed asylum seekers and step up sanctions against employers who employ illegal workers.
Other measures announced by the government include increasing capacity at detention centers by reopening the Campsfield and Hustler sites in Oxfordshire and Hampshire.
Hasler, near Portsmouth, was closed in 2015 after a report described it as “expensive and damaging to prisoners”.
With these measures, the government hopes to reach the “maximum disposal rate” from 2018 within the next six months.
The number of people removed from the UK has fallen from more than 46,000 in 2013 to 14,000 in 2022. It fell sharply to 8,300 in 2020 due to the Covid pandemic, but has risen slightly in recent years.
Home Office Minister Seema Malhotra said nine “return” flights had taken off in the past six weeks, including one carrying more than 200 people.
In early July, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper declared He will appoint someone to lead the UK Border Protection Command to bring together the work of intelligence agencies, the police, immigration enforcement and the Border Force.
The government said the appointment would be made within weeks, but a new command chief has yet to be named.
As part of other measures to reduce illegal migration, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer He promised £84m for programs to prevent illegal migration “at source” in Africa and the Middle East.
Funding for education, job opportunities and humanitarian support will help address the factors driving people to leave their homes, the government said.