French authorities to begin stopping migrant vessels in Channel after British demands
France has agreed to begin intercepting migrant vessels in the English Channel, following an extended period of insistence from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift follows the Prime Minister sent a letter to the French leader asking him to back the initiative and stating there presently "have no 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 picked up their passengers, according to official confirmation.
French police have infrequently acted to stop the overcrowded boats leaving the coastline because it is considered excessively high a risk to both officers and individuals.
"It is essential that we implement these tactics this month... We have no effective prevention in the Channel waters."
Now, a French naval police representative states personnel will begin taking action at sea, with the aim of safeguarding lives.
Notably, the spokesperson excluded the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had previously been suggested as a possible technique to disable the engines of the boats.
The decision to intervene at all is a major step forward, following a short-lived shift towards a stricter strategy this warmer season, which dropped off when the previous Interior Minister departed from office.
This was demonstrated in the summer month, preceding a summit between the UK leader and French president, when French police were observed wading into the sea to slash the hulls of a boat.
Currently French authorities will once more be allowed to intercept boats before they collect migrant passengers from the coastal areas of northern France, however it's not clear how the small boats will be prevented.
Powerful gusts are currently postponing the commencement of intervention operations and the human trafficking networks will be looking for methods to adapt to evade interception, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been contacted for response.
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