French authorities to begin stopping migrant vessels in English Channel after UK pressure
France has agreed to start intercepting small boats in the Channel, following an extended period of insistence from the UK.
The change in policy follows the Prime Minister wrote to the President urging him to back the plan and stating there presently "have no effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.
French security forces will be allowed to intercept the migrant vessels at sea, but only before they've collected their passengers, according to official statements.
French authorities have rarely acted to stop the heavily loaded boats departing from the coastline because it is considered excessively high a danger to both personnel and civilians.
"It is crucial that we deploy these tactics this month... We have zero effective deterrent in the Channel waters."
Now, a French maritime police representative states personnel will begin intervening at sea, with the objective of protecting lives.
Notably, the official excluded the use of nets to intercept boats, which had previously been reported as a potential technique to disable the propellers of the boats.
The decision to intervene at all is a significant step forward, coming after a brief shift towards a stricter approach this warmer season, which dropped off when the former government official departed from government.
That was highlighted in July, in the run-up to a summit between the Prime Minister and President, when authorities were witnessed walking into the sea to slash the sides of a vessel.
Currently French authorities will once more be permitted to stop boats prior to they collect asylum-seeking individuals from the coastal areas of northern France, however it's not clear how the small boats will be stopped.
Powerful gusts are currently delaying the commencement of intervention operations and the people-smuggling networks will be looking for methods to adjust to evade detection, as they have done so often in the previous instances.
The Home Office and the Prime Minister's office have been approached for comment.
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