The Home Secretary, who has pledged to crack down on small boat crossings, met with police officers in Northumbria last week. While there, the number of refugees arriving by small boats exceeded 1,400 this week.
Ms Patel took to Twitter to comment on the encounters she had with police officers in Newcastle and Sunderland.
In one of the tweets, she said: “This week I spoke to the incredible @northumbriapol officers in Newcastle and Sunderland who delivered government-backed action on the front lines to support victims.
“[We are] delivering our #VAWG strategy, improving rape research with Op Soteria, and tackling drug abuse with Project ADDER.”
However, many on Twitter asked why the interior minister did not turn her attention to the southeast coast.
One user replied: “Northumbria! Turn your back to Kent and do your best to protect our borders! This border farce you are leading is a national disgrace, laughable. Do your job!”
Another user added: “Words! Words! Words! The problem is with Dover!!!!!”
Others asked whether the Home Secretary had “abandoned” her goal of tackling irregular migration.
One user said “What about the trim gangs??? Have you given up fighting incoming boats??? Or [have] people found out you’re wasting your time???”
The comments come as the refugee situation in Kent has escalated, possibly due to the good weather.
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Priti Patel and the government have championed Rwanda’s plan to transport asylum seekers to Rwanda to process their applications. They would not return to the UK.
The government says the plan will help deter migrants from making the perilous journey across the English Channel.
However, since the plan was announced earlier this year, 8,000 people have made the crossing.
Rwanda’s plan was supposed to start transporting asylum seekers to the Central African nation, but a last-minute intervention by the European Court of Human Rights has put the plan on hold.