French authorities will start stopping migrant vessels in English Channel following UK pressure

France has agreed to begin stopping small boats in the English Channel, after months of insistence from the UK.

The change in policy comes after the Prime Minister wrote to the President asking him to back the plan and stating there currently "lack any effective deterrent" in the Channel.

French maritime police have been authorized to intercept the migrant vessels at sea, but only before they've picked up their migrants, according to authoritative confirmation.

French authorities have infrequently intervened to stop the overcrowded boats leaving the shoreline because it is considered excessively high a risk to both officers and civilians.

"It is crucial that we implement these methods this month... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel waters."

Currently, a French maritime police spokesperson says officers will start intervening at sea, with the objective of protecting human life.

Notably, the official ruled out the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had earlier been suggested as a possible method to snarl the engines of the vessels.

The decision to intervene at all is a significant step forward, following a short-lived shift towards a more aggressive approach this warmer season, which dropped off when the former Interior Minister departed from government.

That was highlighted in July, in the run-up to a summit between the UK leader and French president, when French police were witnessed walking into the sea to slash the sides of a boat.

Currently French officials will again be allowed to stop boats before they pick up asylum-seeking passengers from the beaches of northern France, however it's uncertain how the vessels will be prevented.

Powerful gusts are currently delaying the start of interceptions and the human trafficking gangs will be seeking ways to adjust to avoid interception, as they have frequently done in the past.

The Home Office and the Prime Minister's office have been contacted for comment.

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