Illegal immigrants – including one who hid in an engine compartment – have been detained after they were found on a coach which was believed to have been on its way to Shropshire.

Two immigrants were found on the coach before it boarded a ferry in Calais, France, on Sunday night.

And a further immigrant was later found in the engine compartment of the vehicle on board the ferry as it was on its way to Dover.

It is thought the coach was bound for Shropshire, but the UK Border Agency could today not confirm which part of the county it was headed to.

A spokesman for the agency today vowed it would continue its work to combat illegal immigration.

He said: “Two illegal immigrants were removed from the coach when it was examined at 11.10pm on Sunday night before boarding the ferry in Calais. Both illegals were stopped from travelling and handed over to the French Police.

“A third illegal entrant was subsequently found in the engine compartment of the same vehicle on board the ferry bound for Dover. It is not known whether the illegal hid before or after the vehicle passed through UK Border controls at Calais but he has now been detained.

“Since 11pm on Sunday night when this coach was searched until 7am yesterday morning, 55 illegals were discovered hidden in traffic at the port of Calais. All of these were prevented from travelling and handed over to the French police.”

He added: “This is further evidence of the extreme and dangerous illegal measures that are being taken to enter the UK.

“Since the start of this year, we have already prevented more than 18,800 individual attempts to penetrate the UK border at our controls in France and Belgium.”