French authorities to begin stopping migrant vessels in English Channel following British demands
France has agreed to begin intercepting small boats in the Channel, after an extended period of pressure from the United Kingdom.
The change in policy follows the British leader sent a letter to the French leader urging him to back the plan and saying there currently "have no effective preventive measure" in the Channel.
French security forces will be allowed to intercept the small boats at sea, but exclusively prior to they've picked up their passengers, according to official statements.
French authorities have rarely acted to stop the heavily loaded boats leaving the coastline because it is viewed as excessively high a risk to both personnel and civilians.
"It is crucial that we deploy these tactics this period... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel."
Currently, a French maritime police spokesperson says personnel will start intervening at sea, with the aim of safeguarding lives.
Notably, the official excluded the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had previously been reported as a potential method to disable the engines of the vessels.
The decision to take action at all is a significant step forward, coming after a short-lived shift towards a more aggressive strategy this summer, which dropped off when the previous government official left government.
That was highlighted in the summer month, in the run-up to a summit between the UK leader and President, when authorities were observed walking into the sea to damage the sides of a vessel.
Currently French authorities will once more be permitted to intercept boats before they pick up migrant passengers from the beaches of northern France, although it's uncertain how the vessels will be prevented.
Powerful gusts are presently postponing the start of interceptions and the human trafficking networks will be looking for ways to adjust to avoid interception, as they have done so often in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been contacted for comment.
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