French authorities will start stopping migrant vessels in English Channel after UK pressure
France has agreed to start stopping small boats in the English Channel, after months of pressure from the United Kingdom.
The change in policy follows the Prime Minister wrote to the French leader asking him to back the plan and stating there currently "have no effective deterrent" in the Channel.
French security forces will be allowed to intercept the migrant vessels at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their passengers, according to authoritative statements.
French police have infrequently intervened to stop the overcrowded boats leaving the shoreline because it is viewed as too great a danger to both personnel and individuals.
"It is essential that we deploy these methods this month... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel."
Currently, a French naval police spokesperson says officers will start taking action at sea, with the objective of safeguarding lives.
Notably, the spokesperson excluded the use of nets to intercept boats, which had earlier been suggested as a potential method to disable the engines of the boats.
The decision to intervene at all is a major advancement, coming after a short-lived change towards a more aggressive approach this warmer season, which ceased when the previous Interior Minister departed from government.
This was demonstrated in July, in the run-up to a meeting between the Prime Minister and French president, when authorities were witnessed wading into the sea to damage the sides of a boat.
Currently French authorities will again be allowed to intercept boats before they collect migrant passengers from the coastal areas of France's north coast, however it's not clear how the small boats will be prevented.
Strong winds are currently postponing the start of interceptions and the human trafficking gangs will be looking for methods to adjust to evade interception, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
The Home Office and the Prime Minister's office have been contacted for response.
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