French authorities to begin stopping migrant vessels in Channel following UK pressure
France has agreed to begin stopping migrant vessels in the Channel, after an extended period of pressure from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift follows the British leader wrote to the French leader urging him to support the initiative and stating there presently "have no effective preventive measure" 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 passengers, according to official confirmation.
French police have rarely acted to prevent the heavily loaded boats leaving the coastline 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 no effective prevention in the Channel."
Now, a French maritime police spokesperson says officers will begin taking action at sea, with the aim of protecting lives.
Notably, the official ruled out the use of nets to intercept boats, which had earlier been suggested as a possible technique to snarl the engines of the boats.
This determination to intervene at all is a significant advancement, following a brief shift towards a stricter strategy this warmer season, which dropped off when the former government official left office.
This was demonstrated in July, in the run-up to a meeting between the UK leader and French president, when authorities were witnessed wading into the sea to damage the sides of a boat.
Currently French officials will again be permitted to stop boats before they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the coastal areas of northern France, however it's uncertain how the vessels will be prevented.
Powerful gusts are currently delaying the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling gangs will be seeking methods to adjust to evade detection, as they have frequently done in the past.
The Home Office and the Prime Minister's office have been approached for response.
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