Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what guidance he has provided to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution on the potential risk of that organisation's activities being defined as illegal when rescuing migrants from the English Channel in respect of the Government's plans to bring forward new legislative proposals under the Government's Our New Plan for Immigration.

The MCA are engaged with DfT and Home Office officials on the drafting of new legislative proposals under the Government’s Our New Plan for Immigration. This has included work to ensure that the activities undertaken by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution when responding to Search and Rescue incidents and rescuing migrants in the English Channel are not considered as illegal activity.

The MCA is also in regular dialogue with the RNLI Executive teams to brief them on our activity in ensuring their action is not considered as illegal when they are tasked to Search and Rescue Incidents to rescue migrants in the English Channel.