Extra sniffer dogs and fencing will be sent to France to help deal with the Calais migrant crisis, British Prime Minister David Cameron has said.

Mr Cameron made the announcement after chairing a meeting of his government's emergency Cobra committee, to discuss the problem.

He also confirmed plans to use military land in the south east of England to park lorries and ease congestion caused by the ongoing migrant crisis.

Later today he will speak to the French President Francois Hollande as part of his efforts to tackle the issue, Mr Cameron said.

"This is going to be a difficult issue right across the summer," he said.

"I will have a team of senior ministers who will be working to deal with it, and we rule nothing out in taking action to deal with this very serious problem.

"We are absolutely on it. We know it needs more work."

Mr Cameron said Britain would work "hand in glove" with the French to tackle the problem.

"The situation is not acceptable and it is absolutely this government's priority to deal with it in every way we can.

"We have got people trying to illegally enter our country and here in Britain we have got lorry drivers and holidaymakers facing potential delays.

"We are going to take action right across the board starting with helping the French on their side of the border.

"We are going to put in more fencing, more resources, more sniffer dog teams, more assistance in any way we can in terms of resources."

Government ministers in England are working with Kent County Council to free up space to park lorries to ease congestion on the M20 motorway, where vehicles are currently "stacked".

Mr Cameron chaired the Cobra committee following his return from a four-day tour of South East Asia.

He has faced criticism for describing the migrants attempting to gain access to Britain as a "swarm".

Acting UK Labour party leader Harriet Harman said: "He should remember he is talking about people not insects and I don't think it's going to distract attention for him to just be trying to whip up hostility to those migrants in Calais when he should be sorting the situation out.

"He has been being warned for months, we've been warning him for months."

Up to 100 migrants tried to break through police lines at a petrol station near the Channel Tunnel late on Thursday.

French police struggled to control the men, women and children, who managed to stop traffic coming out of the tunnel.

Eurotunnel said its French platform was unavailable due to "security reasons".

A spokesman said: "Due to overnight activity around our French Terminal, timetables are disrupted from both directions."

Thousands have tried to make the perilous crossing to Britain in recent months.

One man died during an attempted crossing this week.

It brought the number of people to have died so far this month to nine, according to Eurotunnel.