France to begin intercepting small boats in Channel after UK pressure

French officials have consented to start stopping migrant vessels in the English Channel, after an extended period of pressure from the UK.

The change in policy comes after the Prime Minister wrote to the French leader asking him to support the initiative and saying there presently "lack any effective preventive measure" in the Channel.

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

French authorities have infrequently acted to prevent the heavily loaded boats departing from the shoreline because it is considered too great a danger to both officers and civilians.

"It is crucial that we deploy these tactics this month... We have no effective prevention in the Channel waters."

Currently, a French maritime police representative says personnel will start intervening at sea, with the objective of safeguarding human life.

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

This determination to take action at all is a major step forward, coming after a short-lived change towards a more aggressive strategy this summer, which dropped off when the former government official departed from office.

That was highlighted in the summer month, in the run-up to a meeting between the Prime Minister and President, when French police were observed walking into the sea to slash the sides of a boat.

Now French authorities will once more be allowed to intercept boats before they pick up asylum-seeking passengers from the beaches of northern France, although it's uncertain how the small boats will be prevented.

Powerful gusts are presently postponing the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling networks will be seeking ways to adjust to avoid interception, as they have frequently done in the past.

UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been contacted for response.

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