Eight migrants attempting to cross the English Channel from France in a small rubber boat died early Sunday, officials said.

The new Government in the UK is seeking to stem the flow of “small boats” across the Channel by smashing the crime gangs behind it, more work “upstream” to disrupt the human trafficking trade and speeding up the return of failed asylum seekers to their home country.

Authorities say at least eight people have died during a failed attempt to cross the English Channel from northern France