French authorities to begin stopping small boats in English Channel following British demands

France has agreed to begin intercepting migrant vessels in the English Channel, following an extended period of insistence from the United Kingdom.

This policy shift comes after the Prime Minister wrote to the President asking him to back the initiative and stating there presently "have no effective preventive measure" in the maritime passage.

French maritime police have been authorized to intercept the migrant vessels at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their passengers, according to authoritative confirmation.

French authorities have infrequently acted to stop the heavily loaded boats leaving the shoreline because it is viewed as excessively high a danger to both personnel and civilians.

"It is crucial that we implement these tactics this period... We have no effective deterrent in the Channel waters."

Now, a French naval police representative says officers will begin taking action at sea, with the aim of safeguarding human life.

Significantly, the spokesperson excluded the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had previously been reported as a possible technique to snarl the engines of the vessels.

This determination to intervene at all is a major advancement, coming after a brief shift towards a stricter strategy this warmer season, which dropped off when the former government official left office.

That was highlighted in July, in the run-up to a summit between the UK leader and French president, when authorities were witnessed walking into the sea to slash the hulls of a boat.

Currently French officials will once more be permitted to intercept boats prior to they pick up migrant passengers from the coastal areas of France's north coast, although it's not clear how the small boats will be stopped.

Strong winds are presently delaying the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling gangs will be looking for methods to adapt to evade detection, as they have done so often in the previous instances.

UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been approached for response.

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