People risk their lives in unseaworthy boats all the time in order to have a shot at a better life… This shouldn’t be news by now, some migrants come from places where there has been conflict and they have a better shot at an asylum claim (that in itself might be a greater motivator, that they have a reasonable chance of staying officially) others come from countries (say in Africa, Asia etc..) which are simply poor. No chance of asylum but a shot at living in the UK unofficially.
I mean remember that ISO container tragedy - the victims were Vietnamese people. Were they fleeing the Vietnam war which ended in 1975?