France will start intercepting small boats in Channel after British demands
French officials have consented to begin intercepting small boats in the English Channel, following months of insistence from the UK.
The change in policy follows the Prime Minister wrote to the French leader urging him to back the initiative 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 only before they've collected their migrants, according to authoritative statements.
French police have rarely acted to prevent the overcrowded boats leaving the shoreline because it is viewed as excessively high a risk to both personnel and civilians.
"It is essential that we implement these methods this month... We have no effective prevention in the Channel waters."
Currently, a French naval police representative states personnel will start intervening at sea, with the aim of safeguarding lives.
Notably, the spokesperson excluded the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had earlier been reported as a potential technique to snarl the engines of the boats.
The decision to intervene at all is a significant advancement, coming after a brief shift towards a stricter strategy this summer, which dropped off when the former Interior Minister left government.
This was demonstrated in July, in the run-up to a summit between the UK leader and French president, when French police were observed walking into the sea to slash the sides of a vessel.
Now French officials will again be permitted to stop boats prior to they collect migrant individuals from the beaches of northern France, although it's not clear how the vessels will be stopped.
Strong winds are currently delaying the start of intervention operations and the human trafficking gangs will be seeking ways to adjust to evade detection, as they have done so often in the past.
UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been approached for comment.
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