French authorities will start stopping small boats in Channel after UK pressure
France has agreed to start intercepting migrant vessels in the Channel, following an extended period of insistence from the UK.
This policy shift comes after the Prime Minister wrote to the President asking him to back the initiative and saying there presently "have no effective preventive measure" in the Channel.
French security forces have been authorized to stop the small boats at sea, but only before they've picked up their migrants, according to official statements.
French police have infrequently intervened to prevent the overcrowded boats leaving the coastline because it is viewed as excessively high a danger to both officers and individuals.
"It is crucial that we deploy these tactics this month... We have no effective deterrent in the Channel."
Now, a French maritime police spokesperson states personnel will start intervening at sea, with the aim of safeguarding human life.
Notably, the official ruled out the use of nets to stop boats, which had earlier been suggested as a possible method to snarl the propellers of the vessels.
This determination to take action at all is a significant advancement, following a short-lived shift towards a more aggressive strategy this summer, which dropped off when the previous Interior Minister departed from government.
That was highlighted in the summer month, in the run-up to a meeting between the Prime Minister and French president, when French police were witnessed walking into the sea to damage the hulls of a boat.
Currently French officials will again be allowed to stop boats before they collect migrant individuals from the beaches of France's north coast, however it's not clear how the small boats will be prevented.
Powerful gusts are presently delaying the commencement of intervention operations and the human trafficking gangs will be seeking methods to adapt to evade interception, as they have frequently done in the past.
The Home Office and the Prime Minister's office have been approached for response.
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