🔗 Share this article

French officials have consented to begin intercepting migrant vessels in the English Channel, following an extended period of insistence from the United Kingdom.

The change in policy comes after the Prime Minister wrote to the French leader urging him to back the initiative and saying there currently "have no effective preventive measure" 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 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 civilians.

"It is essential that we implement these methods this month... We have no effective prevention in the Channel."

Now, a French maritime police representative states officers will begin taking action at sea, with the objective of safeguarding human life.

Notably, the official excluded the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had previously been reported as a possible technique to disable the engines of the vessels.

This determination to take action at all is a significant step forward, following a short-lived shift towards a more aggressive approach this summer, which dropped off when the previous government official departed from office.

This was demonstrated in July, preceding a summit between the UK leader and President, when French police were witnessed wading into the sea to damage the sides of a vessel.

Now French authorities will once more be permitted to intercept boats before they pick up migrant individuals from the coastal areas of France's north coast, however it's uncertain how the small boats will be stopped.

Powerful gusts are currently postponing the commencement of intervention operations and the people-smuggling gangs will be looking for ways to adapt to avoid interception, as they have done so often in the previous instances.

The Home Office and Downing Street have been contacted for response.

Connected Updates

• Reasons Britain cannot just return asylum seekers to France
• France backing away from commitment to stop migrant boats