French authorities will start stopping migrant vessels in English Channel following British demands
France has agreed to start stopping migrant vessels in the Channel, after months of pressure from the UK.
The change in policy follows the Prime Minister sent a letter to the President urging him to back the plan and saying there presently "have no effective deterrent" in the Channel.
French maritime police will be allowed to intercept the migrant vessels at sea, but exclusively prior to they've picked up their passengers, according to official confirmation.
French police have rarely acted to stop the overcrowded boats departing from the shoreline because it is considered excessively high a risk to both officers and civilians.
"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 officers will begin intervening at sea, with the objective of protecting lives.
Notably, the spokesperson excluded the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had earlier been suggested as a potential method to snarl the propellers of the boats.
This determination to take action at all is a major step forward, following a short-lived shift towards a more aggressive strategy this warmer season, which dropped off when the previous government official left office.
That was highlighted in the summer month, preceding a meeting between the UK leader and French president, when French police were observed walking into the sea to damage the hulls of a vessel.
Currently French officials will again be permitted to intercept boats before they collect migrant individuals from the coastal areas of northern France, however it's not clear how the vessels will be stopped.
Powerful gusts are currently delaying the start of intervention operations and the human trafficking networks will be looking for methods to adapt to avoid detection, as they have done so often in the previous instances.
The Home Office and Downing Street have been contacted for response.
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