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France has agreed to start stopping small boats in the English Channel, following months of insistence from the United Kingdom.

The change in policy comes after the Prime Minister wrote to the President asking him to back the initiative and saying 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 official confirmation.

French police have infrequently intervened to prevent the heavily loaded boats departing from the coastline because it is viewed as excessively high a danger to both officers and civilians.

"It is essential that we implement these methods this period... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel."

Now, a French maritime police spokesperson says officers will begin intervening at sea, with the aim of safeguarding lives.

Significantly, the spokesperson excluded the use of nets to intercept boats, which had previously been suggested as a potential technique to snarl the propellers of the boats.

This determination to intervene at all is a significant advancement, following a brief shift towards a stricter approach this warmer season, which ceased when the previous Interior Minister left government.

This was demonstrated in July, preceding a summit between the UK leader and President, when French police were witnessed walking into the sea to slash the hulls of a boat.

Currently French authorities will once more be permitted to stop boats prior to they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the beaches of northern France, however it's not clear how the vessels will be prevented.

Strong winds are presently delaying the commencement of intervention operations and the people-smuggling networks will be seeking ways to adjust to avoid detection, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.

UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been approached for response.

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