French authorities will start intercepting migrant vessels in Channel after British demands
French officials have consented to start stopping small boats in the Channel, after an extended period of pressure from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift follows the British leader wrote to the French leader urging him to back the initiative and saying there currently "have no effective deterrent" in the Channel.
French security forces will be allowed to intercept the small boats at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their passengers, according to official confirmation.
French police have infrequently acted to prevent the heavily loaded boats leaving the coastline because it is considered excessively high a risk to both officers and civilians.
"It is essential that we deploy these tactics this period... We have no effective prevention in the Channel waters."
Now, a French maritime police spokesperson says officers will start taking action at sea, with the aim of safeguarding human life.
Notably, the spokesperson ruled out the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had previously 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 shift towards a more aggressive approach this summer, which dropped off when the previous government official left office.
That was highlighted in the summer month, preceding a summit between the Prime Minister and President, when French police were witnessed wading into the sea to slash the sides of a boat.
Now French officials will again be allowed to intercept boats prior to they collect migrant passengers from the coastal areas of France's north coast, although it's uncertain how the vessels will be stopped.
Strong winds are currently delaying the commencement of intervention operations and the human trafficking networks will be seeking methods to adjust to evade detection, as they have frequently done in the past.
UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been approached for response.
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