French authorities will start stopping small boats in English Channel after British demands
France has agreed to begin intercepting migrant vessels in the English Channel, after an extended period of insistence from the UK.
This policy shift follows the Prime Minister sent a letter to the President urging him to support the plan and saying there presently "have no effective preventive measure" in the maritime passage.
French security forces will be allowed to stop the small boats at sea, but only before they've collected their migrants, according to official confirmation.
French authorities have infrequently acted to stop the heavily loaded boats departing from the shoreline because it is considered too great a danger to both officers and civilians.
"It is crucial that we deploy these tactics this month... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel waters."
Currently, a French maritime police representative states officers will begin taking action at sea, with the aim of protecting human life.
Notably, the official excluded the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had earlier been reported as a potential method to snarl the engines of the boats.
This determination to intervene at all is a significant advancement, following a brief change towards a stricter approach this summer, which dropped off when the previous Interior Minister departed from office.
That was highlighted in July, preceding a summit between the Prime Minister and French president, when French police were observed walking into the sea to damage the hulls of a vessel.
Currently French authorities will again be allowed to stop boats before they collect migrant individuals from the beaches of France's north coast, however it's uncertain how the vessels will be stopped.
Strong winds are presently delaying the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling gangs will be looking for methods to adapt to avoid interception, as they have done so often in the past.
UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been approached for comment.
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