At least four people have died after a boat carrying more than 40 migrants started sinking in the English Channel.

Record numbers have crossed the Channel in small vessels in 2022.

The government has announced a series of new measures to try to tackle the issue.

In the early hours of Wednesday, rescue teams were sent to help a small boat which had got into difficulties off the coast of Dungeness, 30 miles west of Dover.

The UK coastguard, the Royal Navy, Border Force staff and Kent Police were involved in the operation.

Overnight temperatures had dropped to 1C in Dover, and would have been colder out at sea. A yellow weather warning was in place at the time.

The BBC understands that 43 people were rescued from the boat, with more than 30 of them saved from the water. At least four people are known to have died.

More than 40,000 people have crossed the Channel in small boats in 2022.

This is the highest number since these figures began to be collected in 2018.

In 2021, the total was 28,526 people, while in 2020 it was 8,404.

Almost all of the people arriving claim asylum. From October 2021 to end of August 2022, 90% of arrivals have applied for government protection.

In the year to September 2022 the UK received more than 72,000 asylum applications, relating to almost 86,000 people. Small boat arrivals are roughly half of these.

Of the 7,805 small boat arrivals who have received an initial decision since 2018, 53% were granted asylum or another type of leave to remain. The rest were refused.

In the first nine months of 2022, half of those arriving in small boats were of just two nationalities:

On 13 December the government announced a series of new measures to tackle illegal immigration:

In addition, the government pledged to abolish the backlog of initial asylum decisions by end of next year. However, it later clarified that this only covers the 92,601 initial asylum decisions from claims made before June 2022, which is when the Nationality and Borders Act was passed.

The government also announced a new agreement with Albania to place more UK Border Force staff in Tirana - the Albanian capital - and fast track the return of failed asylum seekers.

In November, the government signed a new agreement with France to cover the costs of increased Channel patrols.

The £63m deal will pay for increased number of French officers patrolling the coast and more use of drones.

The government also has a plan to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda for their claims to be processed.

The Nationality and Borders Act made it illegal for migrants to knowingly enter the UK without a visa or special permission.

People that arrive illegally could face four years in prison and removal to a safe country, the government says. However, the UK has an international legal obligation not to criminally penalise anyone who seeks protection as a refugee.

The Home Office says a number of "safe and legal" routes are available.

However, some routes are only available to people from specific countries such as Afghanistan and Ukraine. The government also highlights an immigration route for British National status holders in Hong Kong.

Other asylum routes only accept a limited number of refugees from other parts of the world:

Organisations such as the Refugee Council and Amnesty International say there are no safe and legal routes for most people to seek asylum in the UK.

Amnesty International said opening up more safe and legal routes would help reduce exploitation at the hands of people traffickers.

Most of the people who come by boat claim asylum on arrival in the UK. An asylum seeker is a person who has applied for the right to seek shelter and protection in another country.

Asylum seekers have an initial interview and - if their case is accepted - they can apply to remain in the UK.

However, recent changes to immigration law mean an asylum claim can be rejected if the applicant has a connection to a safe third country. This would include passing through France on the way to the UK.

The Home Office says applicants should receive a decision within six months but statistics show that over 70% of applicants had not heard back within that time.

Speaking to MPs in October about Channel crossings, Home Office official Abi Tierney said that 96% of claims from 2021 are still to be processed.

During the application process, many people are kept in hotels due to a shortage of available accommodation. Some asylum seekers are also held in immigration detention centres.

They usually cannot work while their case is being considered.

If their application for asylum is accepted, they are allowed to stay in the UK. If it is rejected, they face being returned to the country they came from, although they can appeal against the decision.

Clarification 2 December: This article has been amended to make clear that the government's "safe and legal" routes are only available to certain groups of people who have already been recognised as refugees, or family members of refugees already in the UK.