Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp stated that a French warship fired live rounds in close proximity to his vessel while he was observing small boat activity in the English Channel. Philp, who was on a fact-finding mission, described the incident as an "effort to intimidate" him.
A video posted by Philp on social media captured loud noises which he and others on the British trawler identified as live ammunition. The French vessel was approximately 300 yards away. Philp reported that the firing occurred while he was being interviewed by the BBC and that there was no prior notification of a training exercise.
"Felt like warning shots or attempted intimidation," Philp posted on X, formerly Twitter. In the video footage, as the firing is heard, Philp is heard asking, "Is that a warning shot towards us?"
Fisherman Matt Coker, who was present on the trawler, told Philp that live firing exercises are typically announced on VHF radio to all vessels in the vicinity, with the firing position also being communicated. Coker stated that no such announcement had been made. "So it sounds like it might’ve been an effort to intimidate us," Philp remarked. Coker added, "It could well have been, it might have been a little bit of a warning shot and a show of force."
The incident took place when the British trawler was a few miles off Boulogne. Photographs from the scene showed a French navy officer holding a handgun on the deck of the warship, firing the weapon away from the British trawler.