French authorities to begin stopping migrant vessels in Channel following UK pressure
French officials have consented to start intercepting small boats in the Channel, following months of insistence from the UK.
The change in policy comes after the Prime Minister wrote to the President urging him to support the plan and saying there currently "lack any effective deterrent" in the Channel.
French maritime police have been authorized to intercept the small boats at sea, but only before they've picked up their migrants, according to official statements.
French police have infrequently acted to stop the overcrowded boats departing from the shoreline because it is viewed as excessively high a danger to both personnel and individuals.
"It is crucial that we deploy these methods this period... We have zero effective deterrent in the Channel."
Now, a French naval police representative says officers will start taking action at sea, with the objective of protecting lives.
Significantly, the official ruled out the use of nets to stop boats, which had previously been suggested as a possible method to snarl the engines of the boats.
This determination to intervene at all is a significant step forward, following a brief shift towards a more aggressive approach this summer, which dropped off when the former government official departed from government.
That was highlighted in July, preceding a summit between the UK leader and French president, when authorities were observed wading into the sea to slash the hulls of a boat.
Currently French authorities will again be permitted to intercept boats before they pick up asylum-seeking individuals from the beaches of northern France, however it's not clear how the small boats will be stopped.
Strong winds are currently postponing the start of intervention operations and the human trafficking networks will be looking for methods to adapt to avoid detection, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been approached for comment.
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