France will start intercepting small boats in English Channel following British demands
French officials have consented to start stopping migrant vessels in the English Channel, following months of pressure from the United Kingdom.
The change in policy comes after the Prime Minister sent a letter to the French leader urging him to back the plan and stating there currently "lack any effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.
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 confirmation.
French authorities have infrequently acted to stop the overcrowded boats departing from the coastline because it is viewed as too great a risk to both personnel and civilians.
"It is crucial that we deploy these tactics this month... We have no effective deterrent in the Channel."
Now, a French maritime police representative states personnel will start intervening at sea, with the aim of safeguarding lives.
Significantly, the spokesperson ruled out the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had earlier been suggested as a possible method to snarl the engines of the boats.
This determination to intervene at all is a significant step forward, coming after a short-lived change towards a stricter approach this warmer season, which dropped off when the previous government official departed from office.
This was demonstrated in the summer month, in the run-up to a meeting between the UK leader and President, when authorities were observed wading into the sea to slash the sides of a boat.
Now French authorities will once more be permitted to intercept boats before they pick up asylum-seeking individuals from the beaches of France's north coast, however it's uncertain how the small boats will be prevented.
Powerful gusts are currently postponing the start of intervention operations and the human trafficking gangs will be seeking methods to adjust to evade interception, as they have done so often in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been contacted for response.
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