French authorities to begin intercepting small boats in English Channel after UK pressure
France has agreed to start stopping small boats in the English Channel, following an extended period of insistence from the United Kingdom.
The change in policy follows the Prime Minister sent a letter to the President asking him to support the initiative and stating there presently "have no effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police 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 rarely intervened to prevent the heavily loaded boats departing from the coastline because it is considered too great a risk to both personnel and civilians.
"It is essential that we deploy these tactics this period... We have no effective deterrent in the Channel."
Now, a French maritime police spokesperson states personnel will begin intervening at sea, with the aim of protecting lives.
Notably, the spokesperson ruled out the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had earlier been reported as a possible method to snarl the engines of the boats.
This determination to take action at all is a major advancement, following a short-lived change towards a stricter strategy this summer, which ceased when the former Interior Minister departed from office.
This was demonstrated in the summer month, in the run-up to a summit between the Prime Minister and French president, when French police were witnessed walking into the sea to slash the hulls of a boat.
Now French officials will again be allowed to stop boats prior to they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the beaches of northern France, although it's uncertain how the small boats will be stopped.
Strong winds are currently delaying the commencement of intervention operations and the people-smuggling networks will be looking for ways to adjust to evade interception, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been approached for comment.
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