A group of 28 people who are suspected to be illegal immigrants have been arrested after they were found hiding in the back of a lorry in Portsmouth. The driver has also been arrested, according to Hampshire Police, on suspicion of facilitating illegal entry into the UK.

Immigration officers and ambulance workers were also present at the scene to process the group, which was apparently made up of families. The group is said to have been packed tightly into a small space, and a number of them had been affected by fumes. According to local media reports, one man has now been taken to Queen Alexandra Hospital in Cosham.

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A spokesperson for South Central Ambulance Service said: "We got a call at 9.45am this morning to attend Walton Road. We sent an ambulance officer, our hazard area response team and two ambulance crews, and they were assisting 28 people. One adult male has been taken to Queen Alexandra Hospital suffering with a medical complaint."

Portsmouth is one of the more common routes into the country for illegal immigrants. Hampshire Police has previously found hidden compartments underneath freight lorries, as well as instances of immigrants wandering through restricted port areas.

And just this month, a Scout troup from Rotherham was stunned to discover an immigrant hiding in the back of their van after they returned from a trip to France. A young Middle Eastern man was discovered hiding amongst kitchen equipment after they disembarked from their ferry crossing in France, after a trip to visit the D-Day beaches and French war graves.

Police are appealing for anyone with information about this new incident to contact them.