French authorities to begin stopping small boats in English Channel after British demands
French officials have consented to begin stopping migrant vessels in the Channel, after months of insistence from the United Kingdom.
The change in policy follows the Prime Minister wrote to the President asking him to back the initiative and stating there presently "lack any effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.
French security forces will be allowed to intercept the migrant vessels at sea, but exclusively prior to they've picked up their migrants, according to official statements.
French authorities have rarely intervened to prevent the overcrowded boats leaving the shoreline because it is considered excessively high a risk to both officers and civilians.
"It is essential that we deploy these tactics this period... We have no effective deterrent in the Channel waters."
Now, a French naval police spokesperson says officers will begin taking action at sea, with the aim of safeguarding human life.
Significantly, the official ruled out the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had previously been suggested as a potential technique to disable the propellers of the boats.
The decision to take action at all is a major step forward, following a brief shift towards a more aggressive approach this warmer season, which ceased when the former Interior Minister departed from government.
This was demonstrated in July, in the run-up to a summit between the UK leader and French president, when French police were witnessed walking into the sea to damage the hulls of a boat.
Now French officials will once more be permitted to intercept boats before they collect asylum-seeking individuals from the coastal areas of northern France, although it's uncertain how the small boats will be stopped.
Powerful gusts are currently postponing the start of interceptions and the human trafficking networks will be looking for methods to adapt to evade interception, as they have done so often in the past.
UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been approached for response.
Connected Updates
- Reasons Britain cannot just return asylum seekers to France
- France backing away from commitment to stop asylum boats
UK immigration
Channel crossings
Border security
