Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy says Britain should open an asylum centre on its territory

Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy says that the infamous 'jungle' camp in Calais should be shut down and moved to Britain.

Sarkozy, who is attempting to make a political comeback, said Britain should bear the cost of dealing with the thousands of migrants at the port, many of whom hope to cross the Channel.

His speech came amid growing discontent over the migrant population in France, which has increased after a series of ISIS-inspired attacks this year.

'I'm demanding the opening of a centre in Britain to deal with asylum seekers in Britain so that Britain can do the work that concerns them,' he told a political rally on Saturday.

Sarkozy said Britain should manage the asylum process, accepting those it wants on British territory and organising charters to remove those who are rejected.

'The jungle should not be in Calais or anywhere else, because this is a republic and those with no rights to be here should return to their country,' Sarkozy said.

Migrants aiming to reach Britain have over the years gathered in camps called the 'jungle', which have rapidly grown amid economic upheaval in North Africa and the Middle East.

Thousands wait at the port to try to reach Britain illegally through the Channel Tunnel.

Migrants aiming to reach Britain have over the years gathered in camps called the 'jungle' in the French port of Calais. Stock image

Sarkozy was speaking in Touquet, where in 2003, France signed a symbolic border treaty with Britain. Under Le Touquet accord, British officials can check passports in France and vice versa.

However, that has led to the migrants trying to reach British shores congregating at Calais. Images of hundreds of people trying to leap onto trucks bound for Britain has roused anti-immigration worries on both sides of the English Channel.

That was a key issue in Britain's vote to leave the European Union, and it has become a hot-button issue ahead of France's April 2017 election.