France will start intercepting small boats in English Channel after UK pressure
French officials have consented to start stopping migrant vessels in the Channel, following months of insistence from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift follows the British leader sent a letter to the President urging him to support the initiative and stating there presently "lack any effective deterrent" in the Channel.
French security forces will be allowed to intercept the small boats at sea, but exclusively prior to they've picked up their migrants, according to authoritative confirmation.
French police have rarely intervened to stop the overcrowded boats departing from the shoreline because it is considered excessively high a danger to both officers and individuals.
"It is essential that we implement these tactics this month... We have zero effective deterrent in the Channel."
Now, a French naval police representative says personnel will begin intervening at sea, with the aim of protecting human life.
Significantly, the official ruled out the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had earlier been suggested as a possible method to snarl the propellers of the boats.
The decision to intervene at all is a major step forward, following a brief change towards a more aggressive strategy this summer, which dropped off when the former Interior Minister left office.
This was demonstrated in July, preceding a meeting between the Prime Minister and French president, when French police were witnessed walking into the sea to damage the hulls of a boat.
Currently French officials will once more be permitted to intercept boats before they collect migrant passengers from the coastal areas of northern France, however it's not clear how the vessels will be stopped.
Powerful gusts are presently delaying the commencement of interceptions and the human trafficking gangs will be seeking ways to adjust to avoid interception, as they have frequently done in the past.
UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been approached for response.
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- Reasons UK cannot just return asylum seekers to France
- French government withdrawing from commitment to stop migrant boats
UK immigration
Channel crossings
Border security
