France will start intercepting small boats in Channel after UK pressure
France has agreed to start stopping migrant vessels in the English Channel, following an extended period of pressure from the United Kingdom.
The change in policy follows the Prime Minister wrote to the President asking him to back the plan and saying there presently "lack any effective deterrent" in the Channel.
French maritime police have been authorized to stop the small boats at sea, but only before they've collected their migrants, according to official confirmation.
French authorities have rarely intervened to prevent the heavily loaded boats leaving the shoreline because it is considered excessively high a risk to both personnel and individuals.
"It is essential that we deploy these tactics this month... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel."
Now, a French maritime police spokesperson states officers will begin intervening at sea, with the aim of protecting lives.
Notably, the spokesperson ruled out the use of nets to stop boats, which had previously been reported as a possible technique to disable the engines of the vessels.
This determination to intervene at all is a significant step forward, coming after a short-lived change towards a more aggressive approach this warmer season, which ceased when the former Interior Minister departed from office.
That was highlighted in July, preceding a summit between the Prime Minister and President, when authorities were observed walking into the sea to damage the hulls of a boat.
Currently French authorities will once more be permitted to stop boats prior to they pick up migrant individuals from the coastal areas of France's north coast, however it's not clear how the vessels will be stopped.
Powerful gusts are presently delaying the commencement of intervention operations and the human trafficking gangs will be looking for ways to adapt to evade detection, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been approached for comment.
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