French authorities will start intercepting migrant vessels in Channel after UK pressure
France has agreed to begin intercepting small boats in the English Channel, after months of insistence from the UK.
This policy shift follows the Prime Minister wrote to the President asking him to support the plan and stating there currently "have no effective deterrent" in the Channel.
French maritime police have been authorized to intercept the migrant vessels at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their migrants, according to authoritative statements.
French authorities have rarely intervened to stop the overcrowded boats departing from the coastline because it is viewed as excessively high a danger to both officers and individuals.
"It is crucial that we deploy these methods this month... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel."
Now, a French maritime police spokesperson says officers will start taking action at sea, with the objective of protecting lives.
Notably, the spokesperson ruled out the use of entanglement devices 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 significant step forward, following a short-lived change towards a stricter approach this warmer season, which dropped off when the previous Interior Minister left government.
This was demonstrated in July, preceding a meeting between the Prime Minister and President, when French police were witnessed wading into the sea to slash the hulls of a boat.
Now French authorities will again be allowed to intercept boats before they pick up asylum-seeking passengers from the coastal areas of France's north coast, although it's not clear how the small boats will be stopped.
Strong winds are currently postponing the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling gangs will be seeking methods to adjust to avoid detection, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
The Home Office and Downing Street have been contacted for response.
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