Sir Keir Starmer failed to vote for his own plan to end the Channel migrant crisis, the Daily Express can reveal. The Prime Minister, Chancellor Rachel Reeves, Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, Health Secretary Wes Streeting and Foreign Secretary David Lammy were all absent from a crunch vote to introduce counter-terrorism-style powers to hunt people smugglers and stop small boat crossings.

Voting records reveal almost one in four Labour MPs dodged the vote for Labour’s Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill – a higher number than at the previous vote. Some 94 Labour politicians did not vote for the Government’s plans, including Sir Keir, Ms Rayner, Mr Lammy and 12 other members of the Cabinet. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage told the Daily Express: “The Prime Minister criticised me at PMQs for not voting for his immigration Bill.

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“Well, he didn’t vote for it either, along with most of his own Cabinet.”

Reform UK deputy leader Richard Tice added: “It’s blindingly obvious that most of this Cabinet don’t want to control our borders and this just confirms it.

“The British people want our borders back – yet Labour can’t even be bothered to turn up.

“Labour are weak on immigration and under their watch, the invasion will continue.”

Tory Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp added: “Starmer is so weak and ineffectual he can’t even be bothered to vote for his own border Bill.

“His Bill prevents Rwanda from happening and allows illegal immigrants to get citizenship. It’s a disgraceful surrender of our border sovereignty.”

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy and Cabinet Office minister Pat McFadden were among 70 Labour MPs who also failed to vote for the Bill in February.

Labour has insisted “smashing the gangs” will end the migrant crisis, despite fears over a lack of a deterrent. Border Force and the National Crime Agency will also be given counter-terrorism style powers to go after the gangs.

Small boat arrivals face up to five years in prison if they refuse to be rescued in the Channel by the French authorities. A new offence will be created to target those endangering another life during a crossing.

This means anyone fighting with French police on the beaches, holding children over the edge of a small boat or “rushing” vessels as they try to launch could all be prosecuted, with a maximum penalty of five years behind bars.

The law changes are designed to replicate powers in the Terrorism Act 2006, so that preparing for a crossing and possession of equipment such as boats, engines and life jackets would be a criminal offence if the intention was to use them to take migrants across the Channel.

And sending failed asylum seekers to Balkan nations is considered another weapon in the “armoury” for the fight against the migrant crisis.

Sir Keir said of plans to send failed asylum seekers to Balkan countries: “What now we want to do and are having discussions of, talks of, is return hubs which is where someone has been through the system in the UK, they need to be returned and we have to make sure they’re returned effectively and we’ll do that, if we can, through return hubs.

“So that’s what the talks are about. I would say in this area no single measure is going to be the measure that is, if you like, a silver bullet.

“By putting it all together – arrests, seizures, agreements with other countries, returning people who shouldn’t be here, and return hubs, if we can through these talks to add to our armoury, will allow us to bear down on this vile trade and to make sure that we stop those people crossing the Channel.”

But the Albanian prime minister, Edi Rama, ruled out such a hub in Albania.

Downing Street said the plans were “entirely different” to the last government’s flagship Rwanda deportation scheme.

A Labour spokesperson said: “Nigel Farage must be confused. If he admits that Labour’s borders Bill will help to prevent boats crossing the Channel, it’s truly revealing that he told his Reform MPs to block it.

“Reform has continually tried to stop new counter-terror style powers, that will go after the criminal people smuggling gangs running this vile trade. This exposes what we already knew: Nigel Farage is not serious about tackling the broken asylum system left by the Tories.

“Labour’s Plan for Change has already seen 24,000 people with no right in the UK removed and we’ll go further to smash the gangs and secure Britain’s borders.”