France will start intercepting small boats in English Channel following British demands
France has agreed to begin stopping small boats in the English Channel, after months of insistence from the UK.
The change in policy comes after the Prime Minister wrote to the President asking him to back the plan and stating there currently "have no effective deterrent" in the Channel.
French maritime police have been authorized to intercept the small boats at sea, but only before they've collected their passengers, according to authoritative confirmation.
French authorities have rarely intervened to prevent the overcrowded boats leaving the shoreline because it is considered too great a danger to both officers and civilians.
"It is essential that we implement these methods this period... We have no effective deterrent in the Channel waters."
Now, a French maritime police representative states personnel will begin intervening at sea, with the objective of protecting human life.
Notably, the spokesperson 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 major step forward, coming after a brief change towards a stricter strategy this summer, which dropped off when the former Interior Minister left government.
This was demonstrated in the summer month, in the run-up to a meeting between the UK leader and President, when French police were observed wading into the sea to slash the hulls of a vessel.
Now French authorities will once more be allowed to stop boats prior to they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the coastal areas of northern France, however it's not clear how the vessels will be stopped.
Powerful gusts are currently delaying the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling gangs will be looking for methods to adjust to avoid interception, as they have frequently done in the past.
UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been contacted for response.
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