GB News came to an unexpected halt moments into the afternoon show with some breaking news
GB News came to a screeching halt for a major breaking news announcement after a batch of small boats destined to carry 1,200 migrants across the English Channel have been seized as they were ferried across Europe. This is the second major consignment of small boats to be found in less than three weeks after joint work between the National Crime Agency (NCA) and Bulgarian law enforcement partners. The consignment of 20 eight-metre long inflatables was found in a large truck bound for the Netherlands at the Kapitan Andreevo checkpoint, overnight on August 10.
The crossing point is one of the busiest in Europe and is a key point targeted by people smugglers and other criminal gangs who are fueling Britain’s small boat crisis. On Thursday’s afternoon show (August 14), hosts Tom Harwood and Emily Carver welcomed Home and Security Editor Mark White onto the show to learn more about the news.
GB News halted their afternoon show to announce some breaking news (Image: GB News)
He told viewers: “It’s a major success for the National Crime Agency. Remember yesterday, they were being criticised for the fact that the number of arrests linked to the Channel migrant crisis had shown a drop compared to the year before.
“They’ve argued that actually the actual number may have dropped but the quality of the arrests their making has gone up. And that’s been highlighted by this news.”
The broadcaster went on to reveal that this is the second major seizure in recent weeks – a similar load containing 25 boats was identified and seized at the same location on July 26. A total of 69 are believed to have been seized at this checkpoint since the start of the year.
He went on: “They are making some significant impacts on the supply of these boats. We know that the people smuggler’s are well embedded in terms of their supply lines but this will hit them.
The NCA have announced their second seizure of small boats (Image: GB News)
“That’s 45 small boats that they won’t have to push out into the Channel that they’ll have to get from elsewhere.” Shortly after they shared the news online, fans flooded to X – formerly known as Twitter – to share their thoughts on the development online.
Many viewers were skeptical that this seizure will make enough of a difference in the long-term. One user fumed: “Merely a small delay, normal service will be resumed in a couple of hours [eye-rolling emoji].”
Another asked: “Why are they policing the Bulgarian, just protect ours, surely that’s easier” as a third argued: “We’re not interested in what happens in Bulgaria, we’ve got our own channel to worry about.” Meanwhile, one user shared their optimism, writing: “Mastering timing and positioning will be a total game changer”.
