Dover port protest blocks ferry traffic over Channel migrant crossings

Dozens of masked people protesting Channel migrant crossings have blocked access to the port of Dover, briefly halting ferry traffic between England and France.

Images shared online showed dozens of demonstrators dressed in black and wearing balaclavas streaming onto roads surrounding the port in the United Kingdom on Saturday.

In an online livestream that appeared to be shot by one of the protesters, a crowd of black-clothed men chanted “stop the boats” as they faced a line of police.

The UK government condemned the action, saying it went beyond peaceful protest.

On Saturday morning, the Port of Dover said all traffic in and out was “stopped due to an ongoing public order incident”. At around noon, port managers said traffic was “free flowing” once again. P&O Ferries also confirmed that access to the port had been restored.

Local police said they were “engaging” with protesters, who had initially blocked “all routes” in and out of the terminal, used by ferries connecting southern England to northern France.

The National Highways agency said the protest blocked roads to the port and caused a 6.4km traffic jam on Saturday morning.

Local Conservative Party councillor, Chris Vinson, said the protest appeared to be “illegal migration-related”.

“I’m not aware that there’s been any violence, although clearly, having the path of your vehicle blocked by men wearing black paramilitary gear and balaclavas is extremely intimidating,” he said.

The Labour government said “the right to peaceful protest is fundamental to our democracy, but we condemn the behaviour in Dover and the travel disruption it has caused”.

“We appreciate the frustration of those who have been impacted today,” the government statement said.

Britain is grappling with how to curb the perilous and politically contentious small-boat crossings, which in recent years have seen tens of thousands of migrants arriving annually on the shores of southeast England.

The issue has been relentlessly seized upon by the hard-right Reform UK party, which surged in popularity on the back of growing anti-immigration sentiment.

The centre-left Labour government has said that the number of boats carrying migrants and asylum seekers across the Channel was the lowest this summer since 2019, in part because of cooperation deals with the French government.

Dover is Britain’s largest international ferry port. During summer months there, it handles more than 10,000 freight vehicles and 15,000 passenger vehicles a day, accounting for a third of Britain’s goods trade with the European Union.

About 110km southeast of London, Dover handled more than nine million passengers and two million freight vehicles last year, according to the port’s website.