French authorities to begin stopping small boats in Channel after British demands
France has agreed to begin intercepting migrant vessels in the Channel, after months of pressure from the United Kingdom.
The change in policy comes after the Prime Minister wrote to the President asking him to support the initiative and saying there presently "have no effective preventive measure" in the Channel.
French maritime police will be allowed to intercept the small boats at sea, but only before they've collected their passengers, according to official statements.
French police have infrequently intervened to prevent the heavily loaded boats leaving the coastline because it is viewed as too great a danger to both officers and civilians.
"It is essential that we implement these tactics this period... We have zero effective deterrent in the Channel."
Currently, a French maritime police representative says personnel will begin taking action at sea, with the objective of protecting human life.
Notably, the spokesperson ruled out the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had previously been suggested as a possible method to snarl the propellers of the boats.
The decision to take action at all is a significant step forward, following a short-lived shift towards a stricter strategy this summer, which dropped off when the previous Interior Minister left office.
This was demonstrated in July, in the run-up to a summit between the UK leader and President, when authorities were witnessed wading into the sea to slash the sides of a boat.
Now French officials will again be permitted to intercept boats before they collect asylum-seeking individuals from the coastal areas of France's north coast, however it's uncertain how the small boats will be prevented.
Powerful gusts are currently delaying the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling gangs will be looking for ways to adjust to evade detection, as they have done so often in the past.
UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been contacted for comment.
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