French authorities will start stopping migrant vessels in Channel after British demands
France has agreed to start stopping small boats in the English Channel, following months of insistence from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift comes after the British leader wrote to the French leader urging him to back the initiative and stating there presently "lack any effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police will be allowed to stop the migrant vessels at sea, but only before they've picked up their passengers, according to authoritative statements.
French police have infrequently acted to stop the overcrowded boats departing from the coastline because it is considered too great a danger to both personnel and individuals.
"It is essential that we deploy these methods this month... We have zero effective deterrent in the Channel waters."
Now, a French maritime police spokesperson states personnel will start intervening at sea, with the objective of safeguarding human life.
Notably, the official excluded the use of nets to stop boats, which had earlier been reported as a possible technique to disable the propellers of the vessels.
The decision to intervene at all is a significant step forward, following a brief shift towards a more aggressive approach this summer, which dropped off when the previous government official departed from office.
This was demonstrated in July, in the run-up to a summit between the Prime Minister and President, when authorities were observed wading into the sea to slash the hulls of a boat.
Now French authorities will again be allowed to intercept boats before they pick up asylum-seeking passengers from the coastal areas of northern France, however it's not clear how the small boats will be prevented.
Powerful gusts are currently delaying the start of interceptions and the human trafficking networks will be looking for ways to adjust to evade interception, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been approached for response.
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