France to begin stopping small boats in English Channel following UK pressure

France has agreed to start intercepting small boats in the English Channel, after an extended period of insistence from the UK.

This policy shift comes after the Prime Minister wrote to the President asking him to support the plan and saying there currently "have no effective deterrent" in the Channel.

French security forces will be allowed to intercept the migrant vessels at sea, but only before they've picked up their passengers, according to official statements.

French police have rarely acted to prevent the heavily loaded boats departing from the coastline because it is viewed as excessively high a danger to both officers and civilians.

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

Currently, a French naval police spokesperson says officers will start taking action at sea, with the objective of safeguarding lives.

Notably, the official ruled out the use of nets to stop boats, which had earlier been reported as a possible technique to disable the engines of the boats.

The decision to intervene at all is a significant advancement, following a short-lived change towards a more aggressive approach this warmer season, which ceased when the former government official departed from office.

That was highlighted in the summer month, in the run-up to a summit between the Prime Minister and President, when authorities were observed wading into the sea to damage the hulls of a vessel.

Currently French officials will once more be permitted to intercept boats prior to they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the beaches of northern France, however it's uncertain how the small boats will be stopped.

Strong winds are presently postponing the start of intervention operations and the human trafficking gangs will be looking for ways to adjust to avoid detection, as they have frequently done in the past.

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

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