French authorities will start stopping small boats in English Channel after UK pressure
France has agreed to start stopping small boats in the Channel, after an extended period of insistence from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift follows the British leader wrote to the President urging him to back the plan and stating there currently "have no effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police will be allowed to stop the migrant vessels at sea, but only before they've picked up their migrants, according to official statements.
French police have rarely intervened to stop the overcrowded boats leaving the shoreline because it is viewed as excessively high a risk to both officers and individuals.
"It is essential that we implement these tactics this period... We have no effective prevention in the Channel waters."
Now, a French naval police spokesperson states personnel will begin taking action at sea, with the aim of protecting lives.
Significantly, the spokesperson ruled out the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had previously been reported as a possible method to disable the propellers of the boats.
This determination to intervene at all is a significant step forward, following a short-lived shift towards a more aggressive approach this warmer season, which dropped off when the previous Interior Minister left government.
That was highlighted in July, preceding a meeting between the UK leader and President, when French police were observed walking into the sea to slash the hulls of a boat.
Currently French officials will once more be allowed to stop boats before they collect migrant passengers from the coastal areas of France's north coast, however it's not clear how the vessels will be stopped.
Powerful gusts are presently postponing the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling networks will be looking for ways to adjust to avoid interception, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
The Home Office and the Prime Minister's office have been contacted for comment.
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