French authorities will start stopping migrant vessels in Channel after British demands
French officials have consented to start intercepting migrant vessels in the Channel, following months of pressure from the United Kingdom.
The change in policy follows the Prime Minister sent a letter to the President asking him to back the initiative and saying there presently "lack any effective preventive measure" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police have been authorized to stop the migrant vessels at sea, but only before they've collected their passengers, according to authoritative statements.
French authorities have rarely intervened to stop the heavily loaded boats departing from the shoreline because it is considered excessively high a risk to both personnel and individuals.
"It is essential that we deploy these methods this period... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel."
Currently, a French naval police representative says personnel will start taking action at sea, with the objective of protecting lives.
Notably, the official ruled out the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had earlier been suggested as a potential method to disable the engines of the boats.
The decision to intervene at all is a significant advancement, coming after a short-lived shift towards a more aggressive approach this summer, which dropped off when the former government official left office.
This was demonstrated in July, in the run-up to a summit between the Prime Minister and President, when authorities were witnessed walking into the sea to slash the sides of a vessel.
Now French officials will again be allowed to intercept boats prior to they pick up asylum-seeking passengers from the beaches of France's north coast, although it's not clear how the vessels will be prevented.
Powerful gusts are presently delaying the commencement of interceptions and the people-smuggling gangs will be looking for methods to adapt to avoid detection, as they have done so often in the past.
The Home Office and the Prime Minister's office have been approached for response.
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