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UK offers Nato security fence to help Calais tackle migrants

British immigration minister says fencing could replace the 'inadequate' barriers at the French port as tensions rise over migrant issue.

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The UK is to offer France the security fences used at the Nato summit in Newport to help tackle migrants trying to get into the country illegally from Calais, the immigration minister says, reports the BBC.

Writing in the Sunday Telegraph, James Brokenshire said the 9ft-high steel barricade could "replace and enlarge... inadequate fencing" at the French port.

It was the latest in a line of measures the UK had taken, he said.

An increasing numbers of migrants have flocked to Calais in recent months.

Mr Brokenshire said the current fencing at the port was "too easy for illegal immigrants to scale".

Earlier this week scores of illegal migrants were able to get past security and tried to run up the main ramp of a ferry bound for the UK. But they were foiled when the crew raised the ramp and turned a fire hose on them.

Mr Brokenshire said: "We would like to establish secure parking areas where legitimate hauliers and travellers can wait without being hassled by would-be illegal immigrants."

He added the UK was "no soft touch" when it comes to illegal immigration and highlighted the government's efforts to tackle the issue.

"Our economy is growing and we have a proud history of tolerance and acceptance to those who genuinely need our protection," he writes.

Read more of this report from the BBC.