France to begin intercepting migrant vessels in English Channel following UK pressure
France has agreed to begin stopping small boats in the Channel, after an extended period of insistence from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift follows the Prime Minister sent a letter to the President asking him to back the plan and saying there currently "lack any effective preventive measure" in the maritime passage.
French security forces will be allowed to stop the small boats at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their passengers, according to authoritative statements.
French police have rarely intervened to stop the heavily loaded boats departing from the coastline because it is viewed as too great a risk to both personnel and civilians.
"It is essential that we implement these methods this period... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel."
Currently, a French maritime police representative says officers will begin taking action at sea, with the objective of protecting human life.
Significantly, the spokesperson excluded the use of nets to intercept boats, which had previously been reported as a potential method to disable the engines of the vessels.
The decision to take action at all is a major advancement, following a brief change towards a more aggressive strategy this warmer season, which dropped off when the previous government official left office.
That was highlighted in the summer month, preceding a summit between the UK leader and French president, when authorities were observed wading into the sea to damage the hulls of a vessel.
Currently French officials will again be permitted to stop boats prior to they pick up asylum-seeking individuals from the beaches of France's north coast, although it's not clear how the vessels will be prevented.
Strong winds are presently postponing the commencement of intervention operations and the human trafficking gangs will be looking for ways to adjust to evade interception, as they have frequently done in the past.
The Home Office and the Prime Minister's office have been approached for response.
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