Small boats - simple. Put on a couple of secure ferries each week with very cheap tickets - say £20 each; just enough to cover the cost. Those arrive at a secure port entry where dedicated teams allow or reject entry - those rejected return on the next immigration ferry. About 500 twice a week = 1000 a week instead of the 1000 on dangerous, expensive small boats that will probably be intercepted anyway.
It would cut the small boats by 95% in one stroke.

It's hard to get rejected when you tell the authorities your kid only likes UK chicken nuggets, you are have a stummer and you don't like food in general.

But rejected or admitted has nothing to do with it. It's stopping the dangerous traffic in small boats - instantly stopped by turning a £5000 ticket into £20. Simples.

JK2006 wrote:
But rejected or admitted has nothing to do with it. It's stopping the dangerous traffic in small boats - instantly stopped by turning a £5000 ticket into £20. Simples.

I am sure the ECHR and EU have something to say about that.