Home Office 'agrees deal with space firm to spend £15million on spy satellites monitoring migrant small boats crossing the Channel'

The Home Office is planning to spend £15 million on spy satellites that will monitor migrants attempting to cross the Channel. It will improve the Home Office's ability to identify 'dark targets' - which do not emit tracking data - such as ships used by criminals to smuggle goods, and small boats used by Channel migrants. The Home Office is planning to spend £15 million on spy satellites which will track migrants crossing the Channel from space. Pictured: A group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dover, Kent, following a small boat incident in the Channel, on December 29, 2024 The Luton-based branch of Telespazio UK will provide enhanced surveillance for the Joint Maritime Security Centre which ensures the country can respond to 'threats to security, law and order, and the marine environment' Migrants board a smuggler's inflatable dinghy in an attempt to cross the English Channel, on Bleriot beach in Sangatte, near Calais, northern France on October 30, 2024 A redacted contract, published by the Government in December, shows that the contractor has to comply with the Officials Secret Act. A Home Office spokesperson told The Sun: 'The Joint Maritime Security Centre is harnessing cutting edge technology and capabilities to provide 24/7 monitoring of UK waters and ensure our borders are secure.