French authorities will start stopping migrant vessels in English Channel after UK pressure
French officials have consented to begin stopping small boats in the English Channel, after an extended period of pressure from the UK.
The change in policy follows the British leader wrote to the President urging him to support the initiative and saying there currently "lack any effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police will be allowed to stop the small boats at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their passengers, according to authoritative confirmation.
French authorities have infrequently acted to stop the overcrowded boats departing from the shoreline because it is viewed as excessively high a risk to both officers and civilians.
"It is crucial that we implement these tactics this period... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel waters."
Now, a French maritime police representative says officers will begin taking action at sea, with the objective of protecting lives.
Notably, the spokesperson ruled out the use of nets to stop boats, which had earlier been suggested as a possible method to disable the propellers of the boats.
The decision to intervene at all is a significant step forward, coming after a brief shift towards a more aggressive strategy this warmer season, which ceased when the previous government official departed from government.
This was demonstrated in the summer month, in the run-up to a summit between the Prime Minister and French president, when authorities were witnessed walking into the sea to slash the hulls of a boat.
Now French officials will again be permitted to stop boats before they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the beaches of France's north coast, however it's not clear how the small boats will be stopped.
Strong winds are presently delaying the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling networks will be looking for methods to adapt to evade interception, as they have done so often in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been approached for response.
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