'Heartbreaking' photo of girl in 'Happily Ever After' pyjamas as migrants continue to cross Channel to Britain

"It's heartbreaking that people including young children are having to risk their lives to seek refuge in the UK," say charity

An Immigration Enforcement officer helps to process a mother and young daughter after they were brought into Dover, Kent, along with a group of people thought to be migrants following a number of small boat incidents in The Channel earlier on Friday (PA)

A young girl in Disney-style “Happily Ever After” pyjamas was seen being brought ashore as migrants continued to cross the Channel to Britain’s south coast in unsafe conditions.

A refugee charity described the news as “heartbreaking” and urged the Government to establish “safe and legal routes” for those making the life-threatening journey to the UK amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Pictures show a young girl wearing pink princess pyjamas which read “Happily Ever After” being helped out of a cabin by a woman with a mask as an immigration enforcement official waits nearby.

Chief executive of charity Refugee Action Stephen Hale said: “It’s heartbreaking that people including young children are having to risk their lives to seek refuge in the UK due to a lack of safe and legal routes to get here.”

He urged the government to “stop talking tough” and to “start thinking smart.”

“More routes for people to claim protection in the UK must be created, including a long-term commitment to resettle 10,000 refugees every year,” he added.

Witnesses say the young girl was one of at least three young children among the group.

Border Force are thought to have intercepted at least five boats carrying several migrants on Friday morning.

The Home Office is yet to confirm details of the incident.

In a separate incident, French rescue teams were called out to sea after a group of 16 migrants were thought to have gone overboard.

But by 8am they were all found unharmed, having come ashore on various beaches near Calais in the northern part of the French coast, the coastguard for the region, le Prefecture Maritime de la Manche, said.

The news comes a week after another 73 migrants made the crossing to Kent, prompting the Home Secretary Priti Patel to say she was “determined” to stop illegal Channel crossings, adding: “I will not stand by whilst malicious criminals prey on the vulnerable.”

But her pledge prompted charity leaders to call for the Government to rethink its approach, with one telling Ms Patel to “stop chasing unicorns”.

Earlier this week the Home Office announced the UK and Greece had signed a migration action plan, pledging to work together to tackle illegal migration in Europe.

The department refused to provide any details of what the plan may include, other than to confirm a Border Force cutter would continue to patrol the Aegean.

A string of celebrities have voiced their support for a campaign calling on the Home Secretary to end the restrictions which prevent thousands of migrants accessing financial support during the coronavirus pandemic.

Dame Emma Thompson, Miriam Margoyles, and others were among those criticising Priti Patel for the policy which prevents migrant families without permanent residency from obtaining support.

The Home Secretary has admitted in the past that under the immigration rules she supports her own parents may not have been allowed into the UK.

Additional reporting by PA