French authorities will start intercepting small boats in English Channel following British demands
France has agreed to begin stopping small boats in the Channel, after months of insistence from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift follows the British leader sent a letter to the President asking him to support the plan and saying there currently "have no effective deterrent" in the Channel.
French maritime police will be allowed to intercept the small boats at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their migrants, according to authoritative confirmation.
French police have infrequently intervened to stop the heavily loaded boats leaving the coastline because it is considered too great a risk to both personnel and civilians.
"It is essential that we implement these tactics this month... We have no effective prevention in the Channel."
Now, a French maritime police spokesperson states officers will begin taking action at sea, with the objective of safeguarding human life.
Notably, the official excluded the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had earlier been reported as a possible technique to disable the engines of the vessels.
The decision to intervene at all is a significant step forward, coming after a brief shift towards a stricter strategy this warmer season, which dropped off when the former government official departed from office.
This was demonstrated in July, preceding a meeting between the Prime Minister and French president, when authorities were witnessed walking into the sea to slash the hulls of a boat.
Currently French officials will once more be allowed to stop boats before they pick up migrant individuals from the beaches of France's north coast, although it's not clear how the small boats will be stopped.
Strong winds are presently delaying the start of interceptions and the human trafficking networks will be seeking ways to adapt to evade detection, as they have frequently done in the past.
The Home Office and Downing Street have been approached for response.
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