France will start stopping migrant vessels in English Channel after UK pressure
France has agreed to start stopping small boats in the Channel, following an extended period of insistence from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift follows the British leader wrote to the French leader asking him to support the initiative and saying there currently "lack any effective preventive measure" in the Channel.
French maritime police have been authorized to stop the small boats at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their migrants, according to official confirmation.
French police have rarely intervened to stop the heavily loaded boats departing from the shoreline because it is viewed as too great a danger to both officers and individuals.
"It is essential that we deploy these methods this month... We have no effective prevention in the Channel."
Currently, a French naval police representative states officers will begin taking action at sea, with the aim of safeguarding human life.
Significantly, the spokesperson ruled out the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had earlier been reported as a possible method to disable the engines of the vessels.
This determination to take action at all is a significant step forward, coming after a short-lived shift towards a stricter strategy this warmer season, which ceased when the previous government official departed from office.
This was demonstrated in July, preceding a summit between the Prime Minister and President, when authorities were witnessed wading into the sea to damage the sides of a vessel.
Now French authorities will once more be allowed to stop boats before they collect migrant individuals from the coastal areas of northern France, although it's uncertain 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 interception, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been approached for comment.
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