France will start stopping small boats in English Channel following British demands
French officials have consented to begin intercepting migrant vessels in the Channel, following months of insistence from the UK.
This policy shift follows the Prime Minister sent a letter to the President urging him to back the plan and saying there currently "lack any effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police have been authorized to stop the small boats at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their migrants, according to authoritative confirmation.
French police have infrequently intervened to prevent the heavily loaded boats departing from the shoreline because it is viewed as too great a risk to both officers and individuals.
"It is essential that we deploy these methods this month... We have no effective deterrent in the Channel waters."
Now, a French maritime police representative states officers will start intervening at sea, with the aim of safeguarding lives.
Significantly, the official excluded the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had earlier been reported as a possible method to disable the propellers of the vessels.
The decision to intervene at all is a major step forward, following a short-lived change towards a more aggressive strategy this summer, which dropped off when the former government official left office.
This was demonstrated in July, preceding a meeting between the Prime Minister and French president, when French police were observed walking into the sea to damage the hulls of a vessel.
Currently French officials will again be permitted to stop boats before they pick up migrant individuals from the coastal areas of northern France, although it's not clear how the small boats will be stopped.
Powerful gusts are currently postponing the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling networks will be seeking ways to adjust to avoid detection, as they have done so often in the past.
UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been contacted for response.
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