Small boat smugglers begin using Belgium for migrant crossings

Channel smugglers are launching small boats from Belgium for the first time as growing pressure on their operations by French police forces them further along the coast. Boats are being launched more than 60 miles from England, before travelling along the Belgian and French coastlines to collect migrants in so-called “taxi” operations. Towns as distant as De Haan, near Bruges, have been used as launch sites for the dinghies, which then motor along the coast for up to four hours before collecting migrants in France, analysis of vessel tracking data by The Times has found. It comes as Britain tries...