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French officials have consented to begin stopping migrant vessels in the Channel, after an extended period of pressure from the UK.

This policy shift comes after the British leader sent a letter to the French leader asking him to back the initiative and saying there presently "lack any effective deterrent" in the Channel.

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

French police have rarely intervened to prevent the heavily loaded boats leaving the coastline because it is considered too great a danger to both officers and civilians.

"It is crucial that we implement these tactics this month... We have no effective prevention in the Channel."

Now, a French naval police spokesperson says officers will begin taking action at sea, with the aim of protecting human life.

Notably, the official excluded the use of nets to intercept boats, which had earlier been suggested as a potential technique to disable the engines of the vessels.

The decision to intervene at all is a significant advancement, following a short-lived change towards a more aggressive approach this warmer season, which ceased when the previous Interior Minister left government.

This was demonstrated 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 damage the sides of a boat.

Now French authorities will again be allowed to stop boats before they pick up asylum-seeking passengers from the coastal areas of France's north coast, however it's not clear how the vessels will be stopped.

Powerful gusts are currently postponing the start of interceptions and the people-smuggling gangs will be seeking methods to adjust to evade detection, as they have done so often in the previous instances.

UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been contacted for response.

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