French authorities to begin stopping migrant vessels in English Channel following UK pressure
France has agreed to start intercepting migrant vessels in the English Channel, after months of insistence from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift follows the British leader wrote to the President urging him to support the plan and saying there currently "lack any effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police will be allowed to stop the migrant vessels at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their passengers, according to authoritative confirmation.
French police have rarely acted to stop the overcrowded boats leaving the coastline because it is considered too great a danger to both personnel and individuals.
"It is essential that we deploy these tactics this period... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel."
Currently, a French naval police spokesperson states officers will begin intervening at sea, with the objective of safeguarding lives.
Notably, the official excluded the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had previously been reported as a possible method to disable the propellers of the boats.
This determination to take action at all is a significant step forward, following a short-lived change towards a stricter approach this warmer season, which dropped off when the former Interior Minister departed from government.
This was demonstrated in the summer month, in the run-up to a meeting between the Prime Minister and President, when authorities were observed wading into the sea to damage the hulls of a vessel.
Currently French authorities will once more be allowed to intercept boats before they collect migrant individuals from the beaches of France's north coast, although it's not clear how the vessels will be prevented.
Strong winds are presently postponing the start of intervention operations and the human trafficking networks will be seeking ways to adjust to avoid interception, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been contacted for comment.
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