A small boat carrying a record 230 migrants in a single vessel has arrived in the UK after crossing the channel.

The boat arrived in the UK overnight after departing French shores, with the 'mega-dinghy' thought to have roughly the same capacity as a Boeing 737.

The previous record number of people to have made the crossing on a single boat was 165 just last month.

It brings the total number of illegal Channel crossings to 15,049, with 224 small boats having so far crossed this year.

Border Force personnel intercepted the vessel alongside RNLI lifeboats ahead of it reaching the English coast.

The latest crossing follows a five-day period in which crossings were limited due to weather conditions.

Over the course of the weekend, around 950 migrants were reportedly brought to Dover.

In response, a Home Office spokesperson told LBC: "This latest incident demonstrates the reckless and dangerous tactics employed by the criminal gangs facilitating these crossings, who continue to put lives at risk by cramming ever greater numbers of people onto unseaworthy vessels.

“We are making progress, with the number of small boat crossings down this year and the lowest number recorded for the month of July since 2020.

“But we must go further, which is why we have signed a payment-by-results deal with the French to put 40% more boots on the ground on French beaches.”

It comes as Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has said on X: “It's yet more proof that this illegal invasion is a national security emergency.”