France will start intercepting migrant vessels in Channel after British demands
French officials have consented to start intercepting small boats in the English Channel, following an extended period of pressure from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift follows the Prime Minister sent a letter to the President urging him to back the plan and saying there presently "have no effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police have been authorized to stop the migrant vessels at sea, but only before they've picked up their migrants, according to official confirmation.
French authorities have infrequently acted to stop the heavily loaded boats leaving the shoreline because it is considered too great a danger to both personnel and civilians.
"It is crucial that we deploy these tactics this period... We have no effective deterrent in the Channel waters."
Currently, a French naval police representative says officers will begin intervening at sea, with the objective of protecting lives.
Notably, the official excluded the use of nets to intercept boats, which had previously been suggested as a potential technique to disable the propellers of the vessels.
The decision to intervene at all is a significant advancement, following a short-lived change towards a more aggressive approach this warmer season, which ceased when the former government official left office.
This was demonstrated in July, in the run-up to a meeting between the Prime Minister and French president, when French police were observed walking into the sea to slash the sides of a boat.
Currently French officials will once more be permitted to stop boats before they pick up migrant passengers from the beaches of northern France, although it's not clear how the small boats will be stopped.
Powerful gusts are currently postponing the start of interceptions and the people-smuggling networks will be looking for methods to adapt to avoid interception, as they have frequently done in the past.
UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been contacted for comment.
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