France to intercept small boats after pressure from UK

Up until now French police would rarely intervene to stop crossings, due to the perceived risk to officers and civilians

France has agreed to start intercepting small boats in the Channel, following months of pressure from the UK.

The change in policy comes after Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer wrote to President Emmanuel Macron urging him to back the plan and saying we currently "have no effective deterrent" in the Channel, according to a report in Le Monde.

French security forces will be allowed to stop the small boats at sea, but only before they've picked up their passengers, the maritime police force has confirmed to the BBC.

French police have rarely intervened to stop the overcrowded boats leaving the coastline because it is considered too great a risk to both officers and civilians.

Le Monde reported Sir Keir's letter as reading: "It is essential that we deploy these tactics this month... We have no effective deterrent in the Channel."

Now, a French maritime police spokesperson says officers will start intervening at sea, with the aim of safeguarding human life.

Notably, the spokesperson ruled out the use of nets to intercept boats, which Le Monde has previously reported could be used to snarl the propellers of the boats.

The decision to intervene at all is a significant step forward, following a short-lived change towards a more aggressive approach this summer, driven by former Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau.

The BBC reported in March that Retailleau wanted these interceptions to begin - but had conceded it was a difficult issue for his government to solve because of their maritime policing rules.

In the run-up to July's summit between Sir Keir and President Macron, the BBC witnessed French police wading into the sea south of Boulogne to slash the sides of a boat.

But interventions then dropped off, and on the UK side there seems to be surprise that it has taken so long to resolve the problems Retailleau had already identified and said he would fix.

Now French authorities will again be allowed to intercept boats before they pick up migrant passengers from the beaches of northern France, although it's not clear how the small boats will be stopped.

Strong winds are currently delaying the start of interceptions and the people-smuggling gangs will be looking for ways to adapt to avoid interception, as they have done so often in the past.

A UK government spokesperson said: "We continue to work closely with our French partners on the shared challenge of illegal migration, and we have already worked to ensure officers in France review their maritime tactics so they can intervene in the shallow waters."

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