Conservative MP Chris Philp has accused the French navy of firing warning shots near him while he was filming a BBC interview about the small boats crisis in the English Channel. The incident occurred on Tuesday when Philp, the shadow home affairs spokesperson, was being interviewed aboard a fishing vessel about two miles off Boulogne.
Details of the Incident
The French patrol boat Flamant passed by at a distance of approximately 300 metres. As it did so, a French navy officer standing at the stern fired 17 shots from a handgun, aiming away from Philp. Philp turned to BBC interviewer Michael Keohan and said: "Is that toward us? I dunno."
Philp later posted a video of the incident on X, claiming it could have been an attempt to censor debate about asylum seekers travelling to the UK in dinghies. He wrote: "There was no notice or training exercise in place. Felt like warning shots or attempted intimidation."
French Authorities' Response
The French authorities denied that the shots were related to Philp or the BBC. A statement from French defence staff said: "French navy units train regularly. Individual combatant training is a normal activity for a vessel on operations." They added that statutory signals required by international standards for firing exercises were displayed and all safety protocols were followed.
The statement emphasised: "This exercise is unrelated to the presence of a British ship in the area, which was outside the range of the firing. The Flamant was not engaged in an operation to monitor migrant vessels."
Reactions from Experts and Witnesses
Some observers were sceptical that the French gunship would have acted in response to Philp's interview. One former senior Border Force officer said: "There are often exercises at sea involving the Royal or the French navy, and shots are occasionally fired, usually using blanks. This may be nothing at all."
Kevin Rowlands, a retired Royal Navy captain and journal editor at the RUSI thinktank, said it was unlikely that the French were deliberately trying to intimidate Philp. He noted that naval vessels train "pretty regularly" with small arms and the handgun appeared to be aimed "in a safe direction".
However, those on the boat with Philp described the incident as unsettling. Keohan said it was "the most unusual moment … in the quiet of the Channel" and noted that there was no warning given to their boat. The captain of the fishing vessel, Matt Coker, told The Times: "It's a bit strange that as they approached us there wasn't fire or anything and then as they went past, afterwards there wasn't fire or anything. They only seemed to be firing the weapons when they were right alongside us."
Philp's Rebuttal
Responding to the French denial, Philp said it "was not credible". He stated: "They fired the live rounds at the closest point of approach to us – and didn't fire anything that we saw before or after. It looked and sounded exactly like deliberate intimidation."
A Home Office spokesperson said: "This is a matter for the French authorities."
