RNLI request to land migrants denied by Southampton and Portsmouth ports

The narrow peninsula at Eastney has only one road leading in and out, which demonstrators used to block coaches carrying the migrants from leaving the area.

It led to a stand-off that lasted into the early hours of Monday.

Portsmouth City Council said it was a “completely unsuitable location to bring the boats ashore” and brought “needless disruption” to the area.

Langstone Harbour Master Billy Johnson said the coastguard was coordinating “a search and rescue operation” and there was “no reason not to accept” the landing of the vessels at Eastney.

“The problem was managing the public order aspect that was also taking place and the geography of the area made that very challenging for the police,” he said.

“This is a new thing in the Solent and the degree to which it attracted public interest and the speed at which the public reaction was mobilised was unusual and surprising.

“The way the emergency services mobilised was really effective, with the police, Border Force, coastguard, the RNLI, ambulance and fire service working completely together – all of whom were hindered by the activities of protesters.”