Immigration was one of the driving issues behind the 2016 UK referendum on whether or not to stay in the European Union.

However, now the country has officially withdrawn from the bloc, it seems fears among people who came to the UK are growing that official treatment of them will change.

In Calais, more than 30 immigrants were found in the back of a truck that had been stopped at a checkpoint, and officials asked them why they were leaving the UK.

‘The group of 27 men and four women told immigration officials that they “feared how they would be treated after Brexit,”‘ the Sunday People reported.

‘They said they were worried their rights would be curtailed when we are no longer in the EU.

‘Then they were sent back by French authorities in three lots of 11, escorted by police, and taken to immigration centres.’

Chris Hobbs, a former special branch officer in border control with the Metropolitan Police, said incidents of immigrants leaving the UK were ‘highly unusual’.

‘It could be that they think the asylum regime is going to be harsher once we leave the EU,’ he warned.

An agreement between the UK and France means that the countries can return migrants seeking asylum within 24 hours of them being caught.

In contrast, over 102 people were caught attempted to enter the UK. Five inflatable boats carrying individuals claiming to be from Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Syria were picked up by Border Force officers.

Nine of the migrants managed to get to a beach in Kent, where they were detained by police.

The 102 migrants — which included seven children — is believed to be a new record for a single day.