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

This policy shift comes after the British leader wrote to the French leader asking him to support the initiative and stating there currently "have no effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.

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

French authorities have rarely intervened to prevent the overcrowded boats departing from the coastline because it is viewed as excessively high a risk to both personnel and individuals.

"It is crucial that we deploy these methods this period... We have zero effective deterrent in the Channel waters."

Currently, a French maritime police spokesperson states officers will start taking action at sea, with the objective of safeguarding lives.

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

This determination to take action at all is a significant step forward, coming after a short-lived shift towards a more aggressive approach this warmer season, which ceased when the former Interior Minister departed from office.

That was highlighted in July, preceding a meeting between the Prime Minister and President, when French police were witnessed wading into the sea to damage the hulls of a boat.

Now French officials will again be permitted to stop boats before they pick up asylum-seeking individuals from the coastal areas of northern France, however it's not clear how the small boats will be prevented.

Powerful gusts are presently postponing the commencement of intervention operations and the people-smuggling networks will be looking for methods to adjust to avoid detection, as they have done so often in the past.

The Home Office and Downing Street have been approached for response.

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• Why Britain cannot just return migrants to French territory
• France backing away from commitment to intercept migrant boats