French authorities to begin intercepting small boats in Channel after British demands
France has agreed to begin stopping migrant vessels in the English Channel, after months of pressure from the UK.
The change in policy comes after the Prime Minister wrote to the President asking him to support the initiative and saying there currently "have no effective preventive measure" in the Channel.
French maritime police will be allowed to intercept the migrant vessels at sea, but only before they've picked up their migrants, according to authoritative confirmation.
French police have rarely acted to stop the overcrowded boats departing from the coastline because it is viewed as too great a danger to both officers and civilians.
"It is essential that we deploy these tactics this month... We have zero effective deterrent in the Channel."
Currently, a French naval police representative says personnel will begin intervening at sea, with the objective of protecting human life.
Notably, the official ruled out the use of nets to intercept boats, which had previously been reported as a possible method to disable the propellers of the boats.
The decision to intervene at all is a significant advancement, following a short-lived shift towards a more aggressive approach this summer, which ceased when the former government official departed from office.
That was highlighted in the summer month, 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 hulls of a vessel.
Now French officials will again be allowed to intercept boats before they pick up asylum-seeking individuals from the beaches of northern France, however it's not clear how the small boats will be prevented.
Strong winds are currently delaying the start of interceptions and the people-smuggling networks will be seeking ways to adjust to evade detection, as they have done so often in the past.
The Home Office and Downing Street have been approached for response.
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