French authorities have said gunfire heard during a BBC interview with UK shadow home secretary Chris Philp in the English Channel was part of a training exercise by a French Navy patrol boat.
According to BBC News, Conservative MP Mr Philp was being interviewed by journalist Michael Keohan about small boat crossings when a French warship passed at about 09:15 BST, around three miles from the French coast.
Keohan said 17 shots were heard from the vessel, which was about 300 metres away, and said there had been no warning to the boat carrying the BBC team. A French patrol officer at the rear of the boat was seen pointing a pistol towards the sea.
Mr Philp said the incident felt like attempted intimidation to stop coverage of migrant crossings. He rejected the French explanation as “not credible” and said he would raise the matter with the French ambassador.
Matt Coker, the captain of the fishing boat hosting the interview, told the BBC he had “never seen anything like it before”.
French authorities said the public service patrol boat Flamant had been carrying out a handgun shooting exercise off Cap de Gris-Nez. They said the regulatory signals required under international standards had been displayed, the safety range had been respected, and the British vessel was outside the firing range.
They also said the exercise was unrelated to the presence of the British boat and that the Flamant was not involved in monitoring migrant boats at the time.
A UK government spokesperson told the BBC: “This is a matter for the French authorities.”
