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Additional reporting by Maya Elese. It was billed as a “groundbreaking deal” and proof that Britain and France could finally cooperate to curb the record number of small-boat crossings across the Channel. The so-called one in, one out deal sounded straightforward: for every migrant deported from the UK to France, Britain would accept one asylum seeker through a new legal route. For the Labour government which has come under fire for their seeming lack of control over borders – the policy was heralded as a new era of control. But when we travelled to Paris, the reality we found was far more complicated. The first to be sent back In a hostel tucked behind a busy street on the outer edges of Paris, we met two young men among the first to be deported under the scheme. We’re calling them Abdul and Ali, which are not their real names to protect their identities. Abdul is from Yemen. He says he fled after being threatened by armed groups during the country’s civil war. “When we landed, we felt safe when we saw the British flag,” he told us. “But a few hours later, we were under detention.” Ali, from East Africa described his experience escaping conflict and persecution before reaching Calais and crossing the Channel. “My country is at war,” he said. “If I go back, I will be arrested or killed.” Both men say they were detained in the UK for nearly two months before being told that they would be returned to France. Both say they weren’t given a clear explanation about why they were selected. Now back in Paris, they say they’ve been left destitute and frightened, and told us they were already considering trying to reach Britain again. “They say France is safe,” Ali said. “But not for me.” In fact, we were told by a source, one of the first to be returned under the one in, one out deal, has since absconded from his accommodation in France. And an Iranian man who was also deported has already made it back to the UK via a small boat crossing. So far, 42 people have been returned to France under the scheme. What is the Dublin agreement? At the heart of their situation is a tangle of asylum law that few people outside Europe’s migration system fully understand. Under the EU’s Dublin Regulation, asylum seekers are supposed to have their claims processed in the first EU country they enter. That means that if someone’s fingerprints were first taken in, say, Italy or Greece, France can send them back there to claim asylum, even if they’re now living in Paris. The UK no longer participates in the Dublin system since Brexit, but France still does. And that has left people like Abdul and Ali in legal limbo – Britain won’t process their claims and France may not either. Ministers under pressure When the returns deal was unveiled in July, it came with political fanfare. Both governments framed it as proof that cooperation could reduce crossings and restore control. But the backdrop has since changed. In the UK, rising support for Reform UK and a summer of violent protests and riots around asylum accommodation have made immigration one of the most combustible political issues of the year. Ministers are under mounting pressure to prove the system is working and that they can deliver on the promise to “stop the boats.” Yet it has already raised questions that neither side seems ready to answer. Who is being selected for deportation? What happens to them once they reach France? And can any deterrent really work, if those returned believe their only hope is to try again? Others we spoke to in Paris and northern France said they, too, plan to cross again, seeing it as a gamble worth taking in the hope they won’t be returned a second time. ‘We will close every single asylum hotel’ Back in Westminster, the Home Office insists the plan is working and that every return helps deter crossings and restore order to the asylum system. Officials told us: “We will close every single asylum hotel – saving the taxpayer billions of pounds.” But on the streets of Paris, the human reality looks very different. For Abdul and Ali, this was never about policy or politics, it was about safety. Both told us they still see Britain as their only option. The one in, one out deal may have been designed to show control. But, for those caught up in it, it has meant more uncertainty and a growing sense that their journey isn’t over yet. Producer: Maya Elese, Alexander Ohrn Camera/ Editor: Paul Mackeson Watch more here
