VIP migrant boat pictured for first time: Brand new £3,500 vessel carrying small group across Channel in comfort approaches the White Cliffs of Dover days before mega-dinghy crossing

Published: 21:29, 14 August 2026 | Updated: 21:35, 14 August 2026 A powerful boat carrying VIP migrants from France made a mockery of Britain’s border defences when it nearly reached the White Cliffs of Dover. The 15 passengers in expensive caps and jackets were spotted by fishermen as they headed towards the entrance of Kent’s Dover Harbour at breakfast time last weekend. They had dodged the French navy and the UK Border Force in a brand-new white inflatable with a 20hp £2,000 Suzuki outboard motor, which our exclusive photos show still had the purchase instructions on it. Our revelation is the latest embarrassment for the Government, which is reeling from the arrival of a super-boat with 230 migrants on Monday this week – the biggest traffickers’ vessel ever to cross the Channel. It is thought the VIP passengers on the white boat will have paid a fee of at least £4,000 each for the crossing if it was organised by traffickers. A fisherman, who with colleagues took other photos and a video of the boat as its occupants neared the Kent coast, said: ‘The alternative is that the passengers, two sporting leather jackets, might have bought the boat and engine themselves. ‘The inflatable is top range, obviously from a proper yachting shop, and they may have made their own way to Britain.’ The fishermen told the Mail they first spotted the VIP boat three miles out from Dover at 7.54am on Saturday, August 8. A Border Force vessel appears to pick up the migrant boat in the Channel before going to port Local fishermen spotted the 15 passengers as they headed towards the entrance of Kent’s Dover Harbour at breakfast time last weekend The migrant boat was a brand-new white inflatable with a 20hp £2,000 Suzuki outboard motor which still had the purchase instructions on it The white boat’s driver signalled to passing vessels that the Suzuki engine had stopped and shouted to the fishermen that they should alert the British coastguard to send a Border Force vessel to pick them up. The fishermen started a rescue but realised the alarm was a ruse when the driver became impatient and easily restarted the engine. The pilot of the VIP boat motored on towards Dover and later stopped again, then asked for the coastguard before firing up the Suzuki outboard a second time. ‘We think he was playing the system. We followed the boat, worth about £1,500, to the Kent coast. It was within a mile of getting there when a Border Force vessel came out to stop it entering Dover on its own steam,’ our sources added. The instructions sticker for new purchasers on the boat’s outboard motor gave details of how to put oil into the engine before starting a journey. ‘It, and the boat, were clearly spanking new. I believe that the driver was a trafficker as he understood the ropes about how to get the coastguard’s attention by pretending he had broken down,’ added one of the fishermen. ‘Under maritime laws if a boat engine stops, the passengers must be rescued by passing vessels or by a rescue team sent out by the Coastguard.’ The migrants are likely to have wanted to be picked up by Border Force officials so they could enter Britain’s asylum system. A witness said the boat came ‘within a mile of getting there when a Border Force vessel came out to stop it entering Dover on its own steam’ Sources said the passengers ‘were dressed as though they were on a day out shopping’ and did not appear to have life jackets This will grant them free accommodation and healthcare – and the top prize of a chance of settling in the UK. This is the first travel-to-order boat carrying well-to-do foreign passengers, suspected to be either Indian or Iranian, ever seen on the Channel crossing from France. The Suzuki engine is capable of speeds of up to 20mph if powering a medium-size inflatable. This means, despite the stops and calls for the coastguard, the boat’s journey from France may have taken just a few hours coast-to-coast. ‘None of the passenger appeared to have life jackets, indicating they didn’t feel any danger on a quick run over,’ our sources said. ‘They were dressed as though they were on a day out shopping. ‘We don’t know who they are, but they were intent on reaching Britain.’ The episode demonstrates that while the trend is for people traffickers to cram ever-more Channel migrants on giant dinghies, those with money are now buying a first-class crossing. A Home Office spokesman said: 'We are making progress with the number of small boat crossings down this year and the lowest number recorded for the month of July since 2020. 'But we must go further, which is why we have signed a payment-by-results deal with the French to put 40 per cent more boots on the ground on French beaches.'