By Doug Faulkner & Francesca Gillett
HOME Secretary Priti Patel approved the tactics after she and her French counterpart failed to agree on any new measures to stop the crossings.
The two sides met for talks on the crisis on Wednesday.
But a senior government source told the BBC the tactic would only be used in “very certain, narrow circumstances”.
And although the government is agreed on the idea of potentially turning back migrant boats to France, the operational details are still to be finalised, the source added.
The French are likely to oppose the move, with interior minister Gérald Darmanin saying that “safeguarding human lives at sea takes priority”.
France believes the idea is dangerous and flouts international maritime law. Under the law, people at risk of losing their lives at sea must be rescued.
So far this week, more than 1,500 migrants have crossed the English Channel by boat.
The UK government has said it needs to use every possible tactic at its disposal to tackle people smuggling, while the Home Office said it continued to evaluate and test a range of safe and legal options to find ways of stopping small boats making the dangerous journey.
The Daily Telegraph reported that Ms Patel had secured legal advice for vessels to redirect small boats away from British waters.
Sources told the paper the tactics would only be used when it was deemed safe and in limited circumstances, with Border Force staff being trained.
In a tweet Ms Patel said she had held constructive talks with French interior minister Mr Darmanin, adding: “I made clear that delivering results and stopping crossings were an absolute priority for the British people.”
But in a letter to Ms Patel before they met, Mr Darmanin said that the French position on interception was unchanged – and that employing turn-around tactics “would risk having a negative impact on our co-operation”.
“Safeguarding human lives at sea takes priority over considerations of nationality, status and migratory policy, out of strict respect for the international maritime law governing search and rescue at sea,” he said.
Mr Darmanin also said that while there had been an increase in the number of people making the crossing this was down to people smugglers using larger boats and other tactics such as decoy boats.
What happens to migrants in the English Channel?
- If migrants are found in UK national waters, it is likely they will be brought to a British port
- If they are in international waters, the UK will work with French authorities to decide where to take them
- Each country has search-and-rescue zones
- An EU law called Dublin III allows asylum seekers to be transferred back to the first member state they were proven to have entered but the UK is no longer part of this arrangement and has not agreed a new scheme to replace it
In July, the UK and France struck a deal to try and stop the number of migrants crossing, with the UK promising to pay France £54.2m for extra action such as doubling the number of coast patrols.
Ms Patel has threatened to withhold the money, due to the number of crossings taking place.
But Calais MP Pierre-Henri Dumont has said “nothing” can stop the small boat crossings, pointing to the size of France’s coastline.
“The fact is, we’ve got 300 to 400 kilometres of shore to monitor every day and every night and it’s quite impossible to have police officers every 100 metres because of the length of the shore,” he said.
Ms Patel will host the final day of the G7 interior ministers meeting on Thursday, with illegal migration anticipated to be the focus.
More than 12,600 migrants have made the journey across the English Channel so far this year.
According to the Home Office, the UK authorities had to rescue or intercept 456 people as part of 17 incidents on Tuesday, and 301 people as part of nine incidents on Wednesday, while the French reported a total of 18 events over the two days preventing a total of 628 people from reaching the UK.
The UK’s clandestine channel threat commander Dan O’Mahoney said efforts so far this year had prevented more than 10,000 migrant attempts, led to almost 300 arrests and secured 65 convictions.
Charities urged the Home Office to take a “more humane and responsible approach” towards asylum seekers.
Amnesty International UK has said people have the right to seek asylum in the UK and “only make dangerous journeys and rely on smugglers because there are no safe alternatives made available to them”.
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-58495948
