Overview
- The Home Office confirmed Hewitt will leave at the end of March after 18 months leading the Border Security Command.
- Since his appointment in September 2024, 58,910 people have crossed the Channel, including 41,472 last year, the second‑highest annual total reported.
- Official figures show 3,863 small‑boat arrivals so far this year, including 144 people on Thursday.
- The Times reported that former military commander Duncan Capps will serve as interim leader, with a permanent successor to be named later.
- A Home Office statement thanked Hewitt and cited the command’s coordination work and passage of the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act, as critics blamed ministers and flagged limited returns to France, reported at 377 with some returnees re‑entering the UK.