LONDON — Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced plans to significantly increase funding for the United Kingdom’s border security agency, doubling its current budget as part of a broader strategy to combat people-smuggling networks operating across the English Channel.

During a speech scheduled for Monday at an Interpol meeting, Starmer will characterize these smuggling operations as major threats to global security. He will emphasize the urgent need for the international community to recognize the gravity of the situation, stating, “the world needs to wake up to the severity of this challenge.” Starmer intends to leverage counterterrorism strategies that have proven effective and apply them to tackle these criminal organizations.

The Prime Minister will also advocate for increased coordination among law enforcement bodies and more collaboration with foreign nations, along with calling for unspecified “enhanced” powers for policing agencies. Plans include raising the budget for the U.K. Border Security Command from £75 million ($97 million) to £150 million ($194 million) over the next two years, which will finance advanced surveillance technology and hire 100 new specialized investigators.

Starmer’s Labour government, similar to its Conservative predecessors, is facing challenges in curbing the influx of migrants from France, many of whom are fleeing conflict and poverty. This year alone, over 31,000 individuals have risked the dangerous journey across one of the busiest shipping lanes globally, surpassing the totals for all of 2023—though still fewer than the figures from 2022. Tragically, at least 56 people have died attempting to make the crossing in 2024, marking it as the deadliest year for Channel crossings since 2018.

Leading a center-left administration, Starmer recently attracted attention for visiting the Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, praising her government’s achievements in reducing migrant arrivals by boat. He will assert that ignoring the plight of those dying in the channel is not a progressive stance.

The opposition Conservative Party has criticized Starmer for dismantling a previous government initiative that aimed to send asylum-seekers arriving by boat to Rwanda. Proponents of the scheme argue that it would act as a deterrent; however, human rights advocates argue that relocating migrants to a country they do not wish to inhabit is both unethical and illegal. Starmer has denounced the policy as a “gimmick” and terminated it shortly after taking office in July, despite the U.K. having already committed substantial funds to the plan without any actual deportations occurring.

Delegates from the 196 member states of Interpol are convening for a four-day meeting in Glasgow, Scotland, which includes senior police and government officials. Additionally, on Tuesday, Brazilian police official Valdecy Urquiza is set to be appointed as the new general secretary of Interpol, succeeding Germany’s Jürgen Stock.