France to begin intercepting migrant vessels in Channel following UK pressure
French officials have consented to start intercepting migrant vessels in the English Channel, after months of pressure from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift comes after the Prime Minister sent a letter to the French leader asking him to back the initiative and saying there presently "lack any effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police 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 rarely intervened to prevent the heavily loaded boats leaving the coastline because it is viewed as too great 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."
Currently, a French maritime police representative states officers will begin intervening at sea, with the aim of safeguarding lives.
Notably, the official excluded the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had previously been reported as a potential method to snarl the engines of the boats.
The decision to take action at all is a major step forward, coming after a short-lived change towards a stricter strategy this summer, which ceased when the previous Interior Minister departed from office.
That was highlighted in the summer month, preceding a summit between the UK leader and French president, when French police were witnessed wading into the sea to slash the hulls of a vessel.
Currently French authorities will again be allowed to intercept boats before they collect migrant passengers from the beaches of northern France, although it's uncertain how the small boats will be stopped.
Powerful gusts are currently delaying the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling networks will be seeking methods to adapt to evade interception, as they have done so often in the past.
The Home Office and the Prime Minister's office have been approached for comment.
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