French authorities will start stopping small boats in English Channel after UK pressure
French officials have consented to begin intercepting migrant vessels in the Channel, after months of insistence from the UK.
This policy shift comes after the British leader sent a letter to the French leader asking him to support the initiative and stating there currently "lack any effective preventive measure" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police will be allowed to intercept the small boats at sea, but exclusively prior to they've picked up their passengers, according to official confirmation.
French police have rarely acted to prevent the heavily loaded boats leaving the shoreline because it is considered too great a danger to both officers and civilians.
"It is crucial that we deploy these tactics this period... We have no effective deterrent in the Channel."
Now, a French naval police spokesperson says personnel will start intervening at sea, with the objective of protecting human life.
Notably, the official excluded the use of nets to intercept boats, which had previously been reported as a potential method to disable the engines of the boats.
The decision to take action at all is a significant advancement, coming after a short-lived shift towards a more aggressive approach this summer, which ceased when the previous government official departed from government.
That was highlighted in July, in the run-up to a meeting between the Prime Minister and President, when authorities were witnessed walking into the sea to damage the hulls of a vessel.
Currently French officials will again be allowed to stop boats before they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the coastal areas of France's north coast, although it's not clear how the vessels will be stopped.
Strong winds are presently postponing the commencement of intervention operations and the people-smuggling networks will be seeking ways to adjust to evade interception, as they have frequently done in the past.
UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been contacted for comment.
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