France to begin stopping migrant vessels in English Channel following British demands
France has agreed to start stopping small boats in the English Channel, following an extended period of insistence from the UK.
The change in policy follows the Prime Minister sent a letter to the President urging him to support the plan and stating there presently "lack any effective preventive measure" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police will be allowed to intercept the small boats at sea, but only before they've collected their migrants, according to official statements.
French police have infrequently intervened to prevent the heavily loaded boats leaving the shoreline because it is considered too great a risk to both officers and civilians.
"It is crucial that we implement these methods this period... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel waters."
Currently, a French naval police representative says officers will start taking action at sea, with the objective of safeguarding human life.
Notably, the official excluded the use of nets to stop boats, which had previously been reported as a potential method to snarl the engines of the boats.
The decision to take action at all is a major step forward, coming after a brief change towards a stricter strategy this warmer season, which dropped off when the previous government official departed from government.
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 sides of a vessel.
Now French authorities will once more be allowed to stop boats prior to they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the beaches of France's north coast, although it's not clear how the small boats will be stopped.
Powerful gusts are presently delaying the start of intervention operations and the human trafficking networks will be seeking methods to adapt to evade detection, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
The Home Office and Downing Street have been contacted for comment.
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