French authorities will start intercepting migrant vessels in English Channel after UK pressure
French officials have consented to begin stopping small boats in the English Channel, after months of insistence from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift comes after the Prime Minister sent a letter to the President urging him to support the plan and stating there currently "have no effective preventive measure" 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 official statements.
French authorities have rarely intervened to prevent the overcrowded boats leaving the coastline because it is considered excessively high a danger to both officers and individuals.
"It is crucial that we implement these methods this period... We have no effective deterrent in the Channel waters."
Currently, a French maritime police representative states personnel will start intervening at sea, with the aim of protecting lives.
Notably, the official excluded the use of entanglement devices to stop 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 significant advancement, coming after a short-lived change towards a stricter approach this summer, which dropped off when the previous government official left office.
That was highlighted in July, in the run-up to a meeting between the UK leader and French president, when French police were observed wading into the sea to slash the hulls of a boat.
Now French officials will once more be permitted to stop boats before they collect migrant individuals from the coastal areas of France's north coast, although it's uncertain how the small boats will be prevented.
Strong winds are presently delaying the commencement of intervention operations and the human trafficking gangs will be looking for methods to adjust to avoid interception, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been approached for response.
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