French authorities to begin intercepting small boats in English Channel following UK pressure
French officials have consented to begin stopping small boats in the English Channel, after months of pressure from the United Kingdom.
The change in policy comes after the British leader sent a letter to the French leader urging him to support the initiative and saying there presently "lack any effective preventive measure" in the Channel.
French security forces will be allowed to stop the migrant vessels at sea, but only before they've collected their passengers, 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 danger to both personnel and individuals.
"It is essential that we deploy these methods this month... We have no effective deterrent in the Channel."
Currently, a French naval police representative says officers 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 reported as a potential technique to snarl the engines of the boats.
The decision to intervene at all is a significant step forward, coming after a brief change towards a more aggressive approach this summer, which ceased when the previous Interior Minister left government.
That was highlighted in July, in the run-up to a meeting between the Prime Minister and President, when French police were observed wading into the sea to slash the sides of a vessel.
Now French officials will again be permitted to stop boats prior to they collect migrant individuals from the beaches of France's north coast, however it's uncertain how the vessels will be stopped.
Powerful gusts are currently postponing the start of intervention operations and the human trafficking gangs will be looking for ways to adjust to evade detection, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
The Home Office and Downing Street have been approached for response.
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