French authorities to begin stopping migrant vessels in Channel after UK pressure
French officials have consented to begin intercepting migrant vessels in the Channel, after an extended period of insistence from the UK.
This policy shift comes after the Prime Minister wrote to the French leader asking him to support the initiative and saying there presently "lack any effective preventive measure" in the maritime passage.
French security forces have been authorized to intercept the migrant vessels at sea, but only before they've collected their migrants, according to authoritative confirmation.
French authorities have rarely intervened to prevent the heavily loaded boats departing from the coastline because it is considered too great a risk to both officers and individuals.
"It is essential that we implement these tactics this month... We have zero effective deterrent in the Channel waters."
Currently, a French naval police representative states officers will begin taking action at sea, with the aim of protecting human life.
Notably, the spokesperson excluded the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had earlier been reported as a possible technique to snarl the engines of the vessels.
The decision to intervene at all is a major step forward, coming after a brief shift towards a stricter approach this summer, which dropped off when the former Interior Minister departed from office.
That was highlighted in July, in the run-up to a meeting between the UK leader and President, when authorities were witnessed wading into the sea to slash the hulls of a vessel.
Currently French authorities will again be permitted to stop boats before they pick up migrant individuals from the coastal areas of France's north coast, however it's uncertain how the small boats will be stopped.
Powerful gusts are presently delaying the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling gangs will be seeking methods to adjust to evade detection, as they have done so often in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been contacted for comment.
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