France will start intercepting small boats in Channel after British demands
France has agreed to begin intercepting small boats in the English Channel, after months of insistence from the United Kingdom.
The change in policy follows the British leader sent a letter to the President urging him to support the initiative and stating there presently "have no effective preventive measure" in the Channel.
French maritime police will be allowed to stop the small boats at sea, but only before they've collected their passengers, according to official statements.
French police have rarely acted to stop the overcrowded boats departing from the shoreline because it is considered excessively high a risk to both personnel and civilians.
"It is crucial that we implement these tactics this period... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel."
Now, a French naval police representative states officers will start intervening at sea, with the aim of safeguarding lives.
Notably, the official ruled out the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had earlier been reported as a possible method to disable the propellers of the boats.
This determination to take action at all is a major step forward, coming after a short-lived change towards a more aggressive approach this warmer season, which ceased when the former government official left office.
This was demonstrated in July, in the run-up to a meeting between the Prime Minister and President, when authorities were observed walking into the sea to slash the sides of a boat.
Currently French authorities will again be permitted to stop boats before they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the coastal areas of northern France, although it's not clear how the small boats will be stopped.
Strong winds are currently delaying the commencement of intervention operations and the human trafficking networks will be seeking methods to adjust to avoid detection, 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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