France will start intercepting migrant vessels in Channel after UK pressure
France has agreed to start stopping migrant vessels in the Channel, following months of insistence from the UK.
This policy shift comes after the British leader sent a letter to the French leader urging him to support the initiative and saying there currently "lack any effective deterrent" in the Channel.
French maritime police will be allowed to intercept the small boats at sea, but only before they've picked up their migrants, according to official confirmation.
French authorities have infrequently acted to stop the overcrowded boats leaving the coastline because it is viewed as excessively high a risk to both personnel and individuals.
"It is crucial that we deploy these methods this month... We have no effective prevention in the Channel waters."
Now, a French maritime police representative states personnel will start taking action at sea, with the aim of safeguarding lives.
Significantly, the spokesperson ruled out the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had previously been suggested as a possible method to snarl the propellers of the vessels.
This determination to take action at all is a significant step forward, coming after a short-lived shift towards a stricter strategy 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 sides of a vessel.
Now French officials will again be allowed to stop boats prior to they pick up asylum-seeking individuals from the beaches of northern France, however it's not clear how the small boats will be stopped.
Strong winds are currently postponing the commencement of intervention operations and the human trafficking gangs will be seeking methods to adjust to evade detection, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
The Home Office and the Prime Minister's office have been approached for comment.
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