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French officials have consented to start stopping migrant vessels in the Channel, following months of insistence from the United Kingdom.

This policy shift comes after the Prime Minister wrote to the President urging him to support the initiative and saying there currently "have no effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.

French security forces will be allowed to intercept the migrant vessels at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their passengers, according to official statements.

French authorities have infrequently acted to prevent the heavily loaded boats departing from the coastline because it is considered too great a risk to both personnel and civilians.

"It is crucial that we implement these tactics this period... We have zero effective deterrent in the Channel."

Now, a French naval police spokesperson states personnel will begin 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 previously been suggested as a potential technique to disable the propellers of the boats.

The decision to take action at all is a major step forward, following a brief shift towards a stricter approach this summer, which ceased when the former Interior Minister departed from office.

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

Now French authorities will again be permitted to stop boats prior to they pick up migrant passengers from the coastal areas of northern France, however it's not clear how the small boats will be stopped.

Powerful gusts are currently postponing the commencement of intervention operations and the human trafficking networks will be seeking methods to adjust to avoid interception, as they have frequently done in the past.

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

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• French government withdrawing from commitment to intercept migrant boats