French authorities to begin stopping small boats in Channel following British demands
French officials have consented to start stopping migrant vessels in the Channel, following months of insistence from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift follows the Prime Minister sent a letter to the French leader urging him to support the initiative and saying there presently "have no effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.
French security forces will be allowed to intercept the migrant vessels at sea, but only before they've picked up their passengers, according to official confirmation.
French authorities have rarely acted to stop the overcrowded boats departing from the coastline because it is considered too great a danger to both personnel and individuals.
"It is essential that we implement these tactics this month... We have zero effective deterrent in the Channel waters."
Currently, a French naval police representative states officers will start intervening at sea, with the aim of protecting human life.
Significantly, the spokesperson ruled out the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had previously been suggested as a potential technique to disable the propellers of the vessels.
This determination to intervene at all is a major step forward, coming after a short-lived change towards a more aggressive strategy this warmer season, which ceased when the previous government official left office.
This was demonstrated in July, in the run-up to a summit between the UK leader and French president, when authorities were observed wading into the sea to damage the hulls of a boat.
Currently French authorities will once more be allowed to stop boats before they collect migrant passengers from the beaches of northern France, however it's uncertain how the vessels will be prevented.
Powerful gusts are presently delaying the commencement of interceptions and the people-smuggling networks will be looking for methods to adjust to evade interception, as they have frequently done in the past.
The Home Office and Downing Street have been approached for comment.
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