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French officials have consented to start intercepting migrant vessels in the Channel, after months of insistence from the UK.

This policy shift follows the Prime Minister sent a letter to the President asking him to back the plan and saying there currently "have no effective deterrent" in the Channel.

French security forces have been authorized to intercept the migrant vessels at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their passengers, according to official confirmation.

French police have rarely intervened to prevent the overcrowded boats departing from the shoreline because it is considered excessively high a risk to both officers and civilians.

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

Currently, a French maritime police representative says officers will start taking action at sea, with the aim of protecting lives.

Significantly, the spokesperson excluded the use of nets to stop 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 major step forward, following a short-lived shift towards a more aggressive strategy this summer, which dropped off when the former government official departed from government.

This was demonstrated in the summer month, in the run-up to a meeting between the Prime Minister and French president, when authorities were observed walking into the sea to damage the hulls of a vessel.

Now French authorities will again be permitted to stop boats prior to they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the coastal areas of France's north coast, although it's uncertain how the small boats will be stopped.

Powerful gusts are currently delaying the commencement of interceptions and the human trafficking networks will be seeking methods to adjust to evade detection, as they have frequently done in the past.

The Home Office and the Prime Minister's office have been contacted for response.

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• French government withdrawing from commitment to intercept migrant boats