French authorities will start stopping small boats in Channel after British demands
France has agreed to begin intercepting small boats in the English Channel, following months of insistence from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift follows the Prime Minister wrote to the French leader urging him to support the plan and saying there presently "lack any effective preventive measure" in the Channel.
French security forces have been authorized to intercept the migrant vessels at sea, but exclusively prior to they've picked up their migrants, according to official confirmation.
French authorities have rarely intervened to prevent the overcrowded boats departing from the shoreline because it is viewed as too great a danger to both officers and individuals.
"It is crucial that we deploy these methods this month... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel waters."
Now, a French maritime police representative states personnel will start taking action at sea, with the objective of safeguarding lives.
Notably, the spokesperson excluded the use of nets to intercept boats, which had previously been suggested as a potential technique to snarl the engines of the boats.
The decision to take action at all is a major advancement, coming after a brief change towards a more aggressive strategy this warmer season, which ceased when the previous government official left office.
That was highlighted in the summer month, in the run-up to a summit between the Prime Minister and French president, when authorities were witnessed walking into the sea to damage the sides of a vessel.
Currently French authorities will again be allowed to intercept boats prior to they pick up migrant passengers from the coastal areas of France's north coast, although it's uncertain how the vessels will be prevented.
Strong winds are presently postponing the start of interceptions and the human trafficking gangs will be looking for ways to adapt to evade interception, as they have done so often in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been contacted for response.
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- Reasons Britain cannot just return migrants to France
- French government backing away from pledge to intercept asylum boats
UK immigration
Channel crossings
Border security
