The number of people making desperate attempts to cross the Channel by sea from France has quadrupled over the last year.

French officials say almost 2,358 people were picked up in the Channel attempting to reach the UK by boat or swimming in 2019, compared with 586 in 2018.

In total in 2019 there were 261 crossings or attempted sea crossings, mostly by small, overloaded inflatable craft, leading to four deaths. Fifty-five percent of the attempts were unsuccessful. The most desperate attempted to swim the Channel, which is 20.7 miles across at its narrowest point.

On Tuesday more than 40 migrants, including eight children, were intercepted in the Channel by the Border Force. Dozens more, including a pregnant woman, were picked up in the Channel in the days after Christmas.

On New Year’s Eve an inflatable craft, carrying six males with hypothermia, according to French rescuers, was intercepted after getting into difficulty nearly seven miles (11km) north of Dunkirk. The migrants were taken to Calais.

In the last year, the number of attempted crossings has soared despite repeated warnings from the French authorities and migrant support organisations of the danger in the Channel, one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world, from traffic, strong currents and icy water.

The police prefecture in Calais, the port city where 95% of migrant boats set off from, said the “action plan” announced by the French interior ministry in January 2019 was working.

“In the last year, 55% of the crossings have failed because of the strong mobilisation of French forces on land and sea,” said the Pas-de-Calais region prefect, Fabien Sudry.

After meeting the British home secretary, Priti Patel, in August, the French interior minister, Christophe Castaner, said it was in both countries’ interests to stop “irregular crossings” of the Channel.

The Home Office said patrols on French beaches had doubled and drones, specialist vehicles and detection equipment had been deployed to deter crossings. It said it had sent back 125 illegal migrants who had arrived by sea in 2019 to show its “determination” to return those entering the country illegally to Europe where they should seek asylum.

Natalie Elphicke, the Conservative MP for Dover, said France needed to do more to stop boats setting off from its coast.