French Police Deflate Migrant Boat on Oye-Plage Beach Near Calais, Preventing Channel Crossing

French police used a knife to slash an inflatable migrant boat on a beach at Oye-Plage near Calais on Sunday morning. The boat deflated, leaving its passengers to step back onto the sand at Oye-Plage. No injuries were reported during the incident.

Footage recorded by one of Utopia 56's activists showed the moment officers intervened. "You can see policemen lacing a boat already in the water, while people are on board," the group stated on social media. Utopia 56 claimed the police intervention was illegal and endangered the lives of those on board.

Under current French guidelines, officers can stop boats leaving the beach by puncturing them but are not allowed to wade out unless the migrants call for help. The Pas-de-Calais Gendarmerie defended the actions of the officers. A spokesman stated the officers had behaved entirely within the law.

"It wasn’t a boat in the water - it had run aground and suffered a flotation failure," the Pas-de-Calais Gendarmerie spokesman said. Utopia 56 reported the incident to France's Defender of Rights. The group also filed a complaint to the IGGN National Gendarmerie Inspectorate.

Utopia 56 was formed during the Calais jungle crisis in 2015. The organisation describes itself as a group designed to help people who are victims of homelessness and border policies. More than 41,000 people successfully made it across the Channel by small boat in 2025.

In the same period, 22,476 attempted crossings were stopped. The prevention rate for small boat crossings in 2025 was 35 per cent. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood signed a new three-year deal with France last month.

The UK-France deal is worth an estimated £660 million. Of that sum, £500 million will be invested to boost enforcement action on beaches in Northern France, with a conditional £160 million to be invested based on the success of new tactics. GB News reported the details of the beach intervention, the competing statements from Utopia 56 and French authorities, and the latest Channel crossing statistics.