In addition, most are aware that Britain is the only country in the European Union that does not demand that its citizens carry identification papers at all times, making it that much easier to move around and work illegally. But many note as well that the immigrants often get poor information about where they are going. At the shelter in Sangatte, several immigrants said they were choosing England because they would get free housing and an allowance when they arrived, which is far from true. And you have the fact that a lot of people are selling them dreams, they are just victims of false dreams. On a chilly, rainy day there is little to do at the shelter, where noise echoes harshly on the concrete floor.
Mothers bathe their children in the sinks as men shave nearby.
But the most activity is around the pay phones, just outside the front door. Everyone waits for word from the smugglers. Since the shelter opened, more than 26,000 men, women and children have passed through the Red Cross shelter. Michael Derr, the director, says he has no doubt that almost all of them are in Britain now, with most having passed through the tunnel while some used boats or ferries to cross. A family of four was not back in the cabin they had occupied.