A MIGRANT has died trying to cross the English Channel, it is understood. The RNLI confirmed it had launched its all-weather lifeboat and a group of migrants were brought to Dover in a Border Force boat on Friday morning. What appeared to be a blue forensics tent could be seen outside the Lifeboats station. It is not known at this stage exactly how many migrants arrived on Friday. In a statement, the RNLI said: "Dover RNLI's all-weather lifeboat was tasked by HM Coastguard at 8.15am today (Friday 18 April) to an incident in the Channel." The death comes after more than 700 migrants crossed the English Channel on Tuesday in the highest number of arrivals on a single day so far this year. Home Office provisional figures suggest 705 people made the journey in 12 boats. Lat Saturday, 656 people made the crossing in 11 boats, which at the time was the highest daily number for the year. Some 7,228 illegal migrants have now arrived since January — a 31 per cent rise on the same period last year. Governments in Europe are getting tougher on the issue — and PM Sir Keir Starmer is being urged to copy a German plan to cut foreign aid to countries that refuse to take migrants back. Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick previously said: “The German government is finally getting serious, and so must we. “Currently our generosity is being abused. “If foreign governments don’t co-operate with us to take back their nationals here illegally, then foreign aid should be suspended and withdrawn. Smuggling gangs have been packing more and more on to the Channel boats in recent months — with as many as 70 people squeezed into a single vessel. This follows the Home Secretary's remarks last week, where she said smuggling gangs are so powerful the only major factor stopping their -dangerous trade is wind and rain. In an interview on the BBC’s -Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg show, Ms Cooper said: “The really un-acceptable situation we’re in is because of the way the criminal gangs have taken hold, our border security ends up being dependent on the weather. “We cannot continue like this, where the number of calm days affects the number of crossings.” Ms Cooper insisted “only a coordinated international response” across the whole migration route could effectively end the reign of the people smugglers. She admitted the situation is un-acceptable and cannot continue.