🔗 Share this article France to begin stopping small boats in Channel following British demands French officials have consented to begin intercepting small boats in the English Channel, following an extended period of pressure from the United Kingdom. The change in policy comes after the Prime Minister wrote to the French leader asking him to back the initiative and saying there presently "have no effective preventive measure" in the maritime passage. French maritime police have been authorized to intercept the small boats at sea, but only before they've picked up their passengers, according to authoritative confirmation. French authorities have rarely acted to prevent the heavily loaded boats leaving the shoreline because it is considered excessively high a danger to both officers and civilians. "It is essential that we implement these tactics this period... We have no effective prevention in the Channel waters." Currently, a French maritime police representative states officers will begin taking action at sea, with the objective of safeguarding human life. Significantly, the spokesperson ruled out the use of nets to stop boats, which had previously been suggested as a potential method to snarl the propellers of the vessels. The decision to take action at all is a major step forward, following a short-lived shift towards a more aggressive approach this summer, which dropped off when the previous Interior Minister departed from government. This was demonstrated in the summer month, in the run-up to a meeting between the UK leader and French president, when French police were observed walking into the sea to slash the sides of a vessel. Currently French officials will again be permitted to stop boats before they pick up asylum-seeking passengers from the coastal areas of France's north coast, however it's uncertain how the small boats will be stopped. Strong winds are currently postponing the start of intervention operations and the human trafficking networks will be seeking methods to adapt to evade detection, as they have done so often in the past. UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been contacted for comment. Related Updates Why Britain can't just return asylum seekers to French territory French government withdrawing from commitment to stop asylum boats UK immigration Channel crossings Border security