France will start stopping small boats in Channel following British demands
French officials have consented to start intercepting small boats in the Channel, following an extended period of pressure from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift follows the British leader sent a letter to the President urging him to back the initiative and saying there currently "have no 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 authoritative confirmation.
French authorities have rarely acted to prevent the heavily loaded boats leaving the shoreline because it is considered excessively high a danger to both personnel and individuals.
"It is crucial that we deploy these methods this month... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel."
Now, a French naval police spokesperson says personnel will begin taking action at sea, with the objective of protecting human life.
Notably, the official excluded the use of nets to stop boats, which had earlier been suggested as a potential technique to snarl the propellers of the boats.
This determination to take action at all is a significant advancement, coming after a brief shift towards a stricter approach this warmer season, which dropped off when the previous government official left office.
This was demonstrated in July, in the run-up to a summit between the Prime Minister and French president, when French police were observed walking into the sea to damage the hulls of a boat.
Currently French authorities will again be allowed to stop boats before they pick up asylum-seeking individuals from the beaches of northern France, although it's uncertain how the vessels will be prevented.
Strong winds are presently postponing the commencement of intervention operations and the people-smuggling gangs will be seeking ways to adjust to evade interception, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been approached for response.
Related Developments
- Reasons UK can't just return asylum seekers to French territory
- France backing away from pledge to intercept migrant boats
UK immigration
Channel crossings
Border security
