France to begin intercepting migrant vessels in Channel after British demands
France has agreed to begin stopping small boats in the Channel, after months of pressure from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift comes after the Prime Minister wrote to the President asking him to back the initiative and stating there presently "lack any effective preventive measure" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police have been authorized to stop the small boats at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their passengers, according to authoritative statements.
French authorities have infrequently intervened to stop the overcrowded boats leaving the shoreline because it is considered too great a risk to both personnel and civilians.
"It is essential that we implement these methods this month... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel."
Now, a French naval police representative says officers will start intervening at sea, with the objective of safeguarding lives.
Significantly, the official excluded the use of nets to stop boats, which had earlier been reported as a possible method to snarl the propellers of the vessels.
This determination to take action at all is a major advancement, following a brief change towards a stricter strategy this warmer season, which dropped off when the former government official departed from government.
That was highlighted in the summer month, in the run-up to a meeting between the UK leader and French president, when authorities were witnessed wading into the sea to damage the hulls of a vessel.
Currently French authorities will again be permitted to stop boats before they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the beaches of northern France, however it's not clear how the small boats will be prevented.
Strong winds are currently delaying the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling gangs will be seeking ways to adapt to avoid detection, as they have done so often in the previous instances.
The Home Office and Downing Street have been contacted for comment.
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