France to begin intercepting migrant vessels in English Channel following UK pressure
French officials have consented to begin stopping migrant vessels in the Channel, after months of insistence from the United Kingdom.
The change in policy comes after the Prime Minister sent a letter to the French leader urging him to back the initiative and stating there currently "have no effective preventive measure" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police have been authorized to intercept the small boats at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their passengers, according to authoritative confirmation.
French authorities have rarely acted to prevent the overcrowded boats leaving the coastline because it is considered excessively high a risk to both officers and civilians.
"It is crucial that we deploy these tactics this period... We have no effective deterrent in the Channel."
Now, a French maritime police representative says officers will begin intervening at sea, with the objective of protecting lives.
Significantly, the spokesperson ruled out the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had previously been reported as a possible technique to snarl the propellers of the boats.
This determination to intervene at all is a significant advancement, coming after a short-lived change towards a stricter strategy this warmer season, which dropped off when the former government official left 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 walking into the sea to slash the sides of a vessel.
Now French officials will once more be allowed to stop boats prior to they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the coastal areas of France's north coast, although it's not clear how the small boats will be prevented.
Powerful gusts are currently postponing the start of intervention operations and the human trafficking networks will be looking for methods to adjust to evade interception, as they have done so often in the past.
UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been contacted for comment.
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