France to begin stopping migrant vessels in Channel after UK pressure

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

This policy shift follows the British leader wrote to the President urging him to support the initiative and saying there presently "have no effective preventive measure" in the Channel.

French security forces will be allowed to stop the migrant vessels at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their migrants, according to authoritative confirmation.

French authorities have rarely intervened to prevent the heavily loaded boats leaving the shoreline because it is viewed as too great a risk to both officers and individuals.

"It is essential that we deploy these methods this month... We have zero effective deterrent in the Channel."

Now, a French maritime police spokesperson says officers will start taking action at sea, with the aim of safeguarding lives.

Notably, the official excluded the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had previously been reported as a potential method to snarl the propellers of the boats.

The decision to intervene at all is a significant step forward, following a brief change towards a stricter strategy this summer, which dropped off when the former government official left office.

That was highlighted in July, preceding a meeting between the Prime Minister and French president, when authorities were observed wading into the sea to damage the hulls of a boat.

Currently French officials will once more be permitted to stop boats before they pick up migrant individuals from the beaches of northern France, although it's not clear how the vessels will be prevented.

Strong winds are currently delaying the commencement of interceptions and the people-smuggling networks will be seeking methods to adapt to avoid interception, as they have done so often in the previous instances.

The Home Office and the Prime Minister's office have been contacted for comment.

Related Updates

• Reasons UK cannot just send back asylum seekers to France
• French government backing away from commitment to intercept asylum boats