Andy Burnham has told GB News that Labour cannot commit to ending the small boats crisis by the next general election.
Mr Burnham, who today spoke to GB News for the first time since becoming Prime Minister, claimed it would be wrong to say Channel crossings would end by 2029.
The Prime Minister instead insisted Labour remains focused on tackling the issue and still intends to “eradicate” the problem.
Speaking to GB News, Mr Burnham said: “It would be wrong, I think, for me to make a prediction now based on a timeline.
“I mean, I just can only promise to people what I know I can do and what I know I can deliver.
“And that is a relentless focus on this issue to deal with the public concern.
“I heard it on doorstep after doorstep in Makerfield, and I said to the people there and I say it to the country ‘I hear what you say’.
“I will be completely focused on the issue. There are more measures that we’re bringing through, but crossings are down, immigration is down. There is real progress to report.”
A staggering 79,275 migrants crossed the Channel by small boat during Sir Keir Starmer’s time in No10, making him the worst-performing Prime Minister on record for small boat crossings.
Despite Mr Burnham hailing an uptick in interventions, the new Prime Minister has presided over 3,003 small boat arrivals in his first 22 days in power.
Mr Burnham’s current daily average – 137 arrivals – dwarfs Sir Keir’s figure of 106.
Meanwhile, Boris Johnson’s daily average stood at just 58 and Rishi Sunak’s roughly equated to 82.
However, Mr Burnham took over from Sir Keir in the summer, meaning a disproportionate wave of new arrivals is expected in his first few weeks in power.
The Prime Minister is also dealing with a change in tactics from people smugglers, with mega-dinghies now crossing the Channel with hundreds of migrants on board.
A record-breaking 230 were crammed onto a single vessel which left northern France for Dover yesterday.
Responding to the development, the Prime Minister told GB News: “I know people will have been worried to see that image yesterday.
“It shows that the gangs are changing their tactics, but so will we.
“We will now change our tactics and we will be relentless in chasing them down.
“I said that when I visited Dover just over a week ago, and I meant it, and I was there to change the conversation.”
Mr Burnham continues to point out that small boat crossings have dropped compared to 2025, with a reduction of around 40 per cent.
The Prime Minister also insists the French authorities have put more boots on the ground after Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood signed a new deal earlier this year.
Mr Burnham added: “There is more law enforcement on the other side of the Channel in summer 2026 than there was last summer, and that has led to quite a reduction in the number of crossings.
“But that’s not good enough. People will say to me, we don’t want any crossings. I understand that concern.
“There are further things that we are doing, and we will keep going at this issue until we deliver that eradication that people are looking for.”