French authorities to begin intercepting migrant vessels in Channel after UK pressure
French officials have consented to begin intercepting migrant vessels in the English Channel, after months of insistence from the UK.
The change in policy comes after the Prime Minister sent a letter to the French leader urging him to support the plan and stating there currently "have no effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police have been authorized to stop the migrant vessels at sea, but only before they've picked up their migrants, according to authoritative statements.
French police have rarely acted to prevent the heavily loaded 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."
Currently, a French maritime police spokesperson says officers will begin intervening at sea, with the aim of safeguarding lives.
Significantly, the spokesperson excluded the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had earlier been suggested as a possible method to disable the engines of the boats.
The decision to take action at all is a major advancement, coming after a brief shift towards a more aggressive strategy this summer, which ceased when the previous government official left office.
This was demonstrated in the summer month, preceding a summit between the Prime Minister and President, when authorities were witnessed wading into the sea to slash the sides of a boat.
Now French authorities will again be allowed to intercept boats before they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the beaches of northern France, however it's uncertain how the small boats will be stopped.
Strong winds are presently postponing the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling networks will be looking for methods to adapt to avoid detection, as they have done so often in the previous instances.
The Home Office and the Prime Minister's office have been approached for comment.
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