A total 15 people have been arrested in France on suspicion of being part of a people-smuggling ring that was involved in a mass death at sea.

Last November, 27 asylum seekers drowned when their dinghy accidentally capsized off Calais.

The BBC today reports that French police have now indicted 13 men and two women.

Some could face charges of involuntary manslaughter and people smuggling.

French media says the arrests were made in northern and eastern parts of France plus Paris.

Five people have been released without charge so far.

One person is under formal investigation and nine will face a judge shortly to decide if they will also be placed under formal investigation.

The French newspaper Le Parisien says the majority of those arrested are Afghan and Pakistani. Other media say that at least two are French.

Last November's tragedy was one of the worst mass deaths involving asylum seekers trying to reach Britain.

A total 58 Chinese people were found dead in the back of a truck in Dover on June 18, 2000.

On October 23, 2019 the bodies of 39 Vietnamese men, women and children were found in the back of a lorry on the Essex side of the Dartford Crossing.

Tom Pursglove, who is the British Minister for Justice and Tackling Illegal Migration spoke to KentOnline earlier today and commented before the latest news broke.

He said the government has to "deal" with people making "dangerous journeys across the Channel".

He said: "We don't want people putting their lives at risk. We saw last November what a disaster that can cause."

Mr Pursglove also said the next deporation flight for asylum seekers to Rwanda could be in a matter of weeks.

He refused to give an exact date saying: "I cannot say for operational reasons and we are not going to give a running commentary. But I can say it is aimed to be in a matter of weeks."

The first deportation flight, meant for June 14, never happened.

"Inaction is not an option and failure is not an option..."

Despite it being accepted by the British Court of Appeal, it was blocked at the last minute by the European Court of Human Rights.

He said he accepted that could happen again but said: "We were disappointed with the ruling but have to get to grips with this.

"It is going to take time to deliver but inaction is not an option and failure is not an option.

"For all those who criticise our policy on this they don't offer an alternative."

Last April the British government made a deal with Rwanda for asylum seekers who they say illegal cross the Channel to be deported to the African country.

The policy has caused widespread protests including from leading figures such as the Archbishop of Canterbury.

The Nationality and Borders Act, which received Royal Assent in April, has come into effect from this week.

It says anyone caught piloting a vessel carrying asylum seekers towards the Kent could face life in prison if found guilty.

These include increasing the maximum penalty for illegally entering the UK or overstaying a visa from six months to four years in prison, and new powers for immigration officers to search for people trying to enter the country.

The problem of asylum seekers trying to reach the UK by crossing the Channel has persisted over the last four years.

According to the figures from the Home Office, in 2021, some 28,256 people made the crossing. In 2018 the figure was just 299.

The Ministry of Defence now in charge of the statistics, says that from Monday, June 20 to Sunday, June 26, 516 people made the crossing in 12 boats.

Yesterday (Wednesday) it was 229 in six vessels.

Many asylum seekers have to be rescued at sea and first brought to Dover but others land by themselves at places such as Dungeness and Kingsdown near Deal.

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