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

France has agreed to start stopping migrant vessels in the Channel, after an extended period of pressure from the United Kingdom.

This policy shift follows the Prime Minister wrote to the French leader urging him to support the plan and stating there currently "have no effective preventive measure" in the maritime passage.

French security forces will be allowed to stop the small boats at sea, but only before they've collected their passengers, according to authoritative confirmation.

French authorities have rarely acted to prevent the overcrowded boats departing from the coastline because it is considered excessively high a risk to both officers and individuals.

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

Currently, a French maritime police spokesperson states personnel will begin taking action at sea, with the aim of safeguarding human life.

Notably, the spokesperson excluded the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had earlier been reported as a potential technique to disable the propellers of the vessels.

This determination to take action at all is a significant step forward, following a brief shift towards a more aggressive approach this warmer season, which dropped off when the former government official left office.

That was highlighted in July, in the run-up to a summit between the UK leader and President, when authorities were observed wading into the sea to damage the sides of a boat.

Now French authorities will once more be allowed to stop boats before they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the beaches of France's north coast, although it's uncertain how the small boats will be stopped.

Powerful gusts are currently delaying the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling gangs will be looking for ways to adapt to evade detection, as they have frequently done in the past.

UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been approached for comment.