France has announced a significant shift in its approach to the ongoing migrant crisis in the English Channel, authorizing its maritime police to intercept small boats before they collect migrants from the beaches of northern France. The policy change, formalized in late November 2025, comes after months of mounting political pressure from the United Kingdom, particularly following a direct appeal from UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to French President Emmanuel Macron.
According to Le Monde, the move was catalyzed by a letter from Starmer urging that "it is essential that we deploy tactics this month" and emphasizing the UK’s lack of an "effective deterrent" in the Channel. The French government, after prolonged deliberation, responded by updating its rules to allow maritime police to intervene at sea, but crucially, only before passengers are on board the vessels. The stated aim is to safeguard life by preventing unsafe departures, rather than risking dangerous confrontations with overcrowded boats already in deeper waters.
French authorities have clarified that the new protocol does not include some of the more aggressive measures that were previously floated, such as using nets to entangle propellers—a tactic that had been under discussion but is now explicitly ruled out. Instead, the focus will be on using interception craft to block or tow small boats before they reach pre-arranged pick-up points along the coast. As a spokesperson for the French maritime police put it, "The French State's response to the phenomenon of dangerous sea crossings to the United Kingdom is continuously adapting to the risks deliberately taken by smugglers. In order to protect human life and fight against smugglers involved in criminal human trafficking networks, the Maritime Gendarmerie will soon be able to carry out control and intervention operations at sea on vessels suspected of being taxi-boats."
The "taxi-boat" method, as described by French officials and reported by Sky News, involves people smugglers sending inflatable boats eight to ten meters long from points along the northern French coast. These boats then sail parallel to the shoreline, picking up migrants in the water—often in increasingly chaotic and dangerous conditions. This evolving tactic has made it more challenging for authorities to intervene safely and effectively.
Until now, French police have mainly intervened on land or in very shallow water, trying to disrupt launches on the beaches or in the surf. Rarely have they attempted to halt boats already afloat, citing the risk of capsizing vessels packed with desperate passengers, including children and babies. This caution was reflected in long-standing French guidance which prioritized rescue over enforcement when migrants were already at sea.
The new approach, as reported by BBC and Nation.Cymru, is seen as a formalization and extension of practices that had been tested on a limited basis earlier in 2025. For example, French officers were filmed wading into the water near Boulogne to puncture dinghies close to shore. Those incidents sparked debate within France about the balance between enforcement and safety, and exposed gaps in the existing rules governing maritime policing in the Channel.
Operational details of the new policy remain limited. French authorities have indicated that strong winds in the Channel are currently delaying the start of the new interceptions, and have not publicly disclosed how many additional vessels or personnel will be committed to the operation. Law enforcement sources expect people-smuggling networks to adapt quickly, possibly by shifting departure points, changing launch times, or using different types of craft to reduce the risk of interception close to shore.
On the UK side, the move is being presented as a direct response to political pressure. A government spokesperson emphasized the ongoing "close cooperation with our French partners on the shared challenge of illegal migration," noting that joint efforts have already prevented over 20,000 crossings in 2025 alone. The spokesperson also highlighted the landmark "one in, one out" pilot scheme, launched in August 2025, which allows for the detention and return of small boat arrivals to France in exchange for an equivalent number of people who apply through safe and legal routes. According to the UK Home Office, 153 migrants have been returned to France and 134 have arrived in the UK under this deal as of late November.
Despite these efforts, the scale of the challenge remains daunting. More than 180,000 people have reached the UK in small boats since 2018, with 39,292 making the journey across the Channel so far in 2025. This figure already surpasses the totals for 2024 and 2023, though it remains below the record set in 2022. The persistent flow of migrants has fueled criticism from both sides of the Channel, with some arguing that enforcement alone has not significantly reduced overall numbers, as smuggling groups have repeatedly adapted to new measures.
Within France, police unions and migrant support organizations have expressed concern that more forceful tactics at sea could increase the risk of serious incidents if not tightly controlled. Steve Smith, chief executive of Care4Calais, was blunt in his assessment: "This is a dangerous moment, that will cost more lives. Intercepting boats whilst they are in the water has never been done before because, quite frankly, it puts people at risk." Smith also dismissed the notion that "enforcement" or "deterrents" would reduce crossings, arguing that such measures would only force people to take more dangerous routes. "The only way to stop Channel crossings is to create safe routes for people to claim asylum in the UK," he said.
The French government insists that the updated policy is framed around the protection of life and that officers will continue to be bound by strict safety rules. Officials in Paris see the decision as both a formalization of existing practices and a necessary extension to address the evolving tactics of people-smuggling networks. For London and Paris, the new authorization represents a significant political signal: a public acknowledgment that the previous posture in the Channel is being tightened in response to UK pressure.
As the two governments seek to demonstrate that this latest adjustment to their joint strategy can deliver visible results, the effectiveness of the new interceptions—and their compliance with maritime and human-rights obligations—will be scrutinized closely on both sides of the Channel. With strong winds delaying the start of operations and smugglers already looking for ways to adapt, the coming months will reveal whether this new approach can truly make a difference in one of Europe’s most persistent humanitarian challenges.
