Germany to close loophole that let human smugglers stash boats there, UK says

LONDON/BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany will close a legal loophole that enabled human traffickers to store the small boats they use to cross the English Channel as part of a broader German-British deal to tackle people-smuggling, the British interior ministry said.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, elected to office in July, has prioritised cracking down on illegal migration by combatting gangs of people smugglers. In September he reached a deal with his Italian counterpart, Giorgia Meloni, to share intelligence and work more closely together to "smash" the gangs, while his government has more recently reached a security pact with Iraq to target such gangs and strengthen border co-operation.

"Under the plan, Germany confirmed its intention to clarify their law by making it a criminal offence to facilitate the smuggling of migrants to the UK," the British Interior Ministry said in a statement.

"This will give German prosecutors more tools to tackle the supply and storage of dangerous small boats equipment and allow the UK and Germany to better counter the continually evolving tactics of people smuggling gangs."

Germany confirmed in a separate statement it had agreed to the joint action plan on irregular migration that aimed to disrupt supply chains and prevent irregular border crossings but did not specifically address that loophole.

(Reporting by Muvija M in London and Sarah Marsh in Berlin; Editing by Matthew Lewis)