​PM says vile people-smuggling gangs should be treated in same way as terrorists (2025)

Keir Starmer will today mobilise over 40 countries in a global fight against the vile trade of people-smuggling gangs as he opens the Organised International Crime (ICO) summit in London

Keir Starmer will today mobilise over 40 countries in a global fight against the vile trade of people-smuggling gangs.

The PM will say they should work together in the same way they would to stop terrorists as he opens the two-day Organised International Crime (ICO) summit in London. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper will use the event to unveil £33million in funding to disrupt trafficking routes across Europe, the Western Balkans, Asia, and Africa.

The PM will say: “This vile trade exploits the cracks between our institutions, pits nations against one another and profits from our inability at the political level to come together. When I was the Director of Public Prosecutions, we worked across borders throughout Europe and beyond to foil numerous plots, saving thousands of lives in the process. We prevented planes from being blown up over the Atlantic and brought the perpetrators to justice."

He will add: "I believe we should treat Organised Immigration Crime in the same way. I simply do not believe organised immigration crime cannot be tackled. We've got to combine our resources, share intelligence and tactics, and tackle the problem upstream at every step of the people-smuggling routes."

Countries including Albania, Vietnam and Iraq - from where migrants have travelled to the UK - will join the talks alongside representatives from France, the US and China. Representatives from tech giants, Meta, X and TikTok are also set to discuss how to tackle online promotion of irregular migration. The Home Office said it was launching adverts on the Vietnamese instant messaging app, Zalo, warning people of the dangers of people smuggling.

Over the weekend the government also announced plans to expand right-to-work checks to cover gig economy workers as part of a crackdown on illegal working. Speaking on the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Ms Cooper also suggested she will review how international human rights law is applied to migration cases.

Reports in recent weeks have suggested the Government wants to follow the lead of Denmark, which is said to take a tougher stance on how the right to family life is applied to migration cases.

Ms Cooper replied: "Well, we continue to support international law. That is really important, and it's because we support international law that we've managed to get new agreements with France and Germany. There have been some cases that do raise some real significant concerns, and that is also about the way in which the immigration asylum system operates."

The Home Secretary also appeared to blame the weather in part for the high number of small boat crossings in March so far. She said: "We cannot carry on with border security being so dependent on the number of calm days that happen in the Channel. But the reason that is happening is because the criminal gangs still have a deep hold."