Published at September, 17 2025
Combating cross-Channel social dumping Strengthening of the Franco-British cooperation
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On 15 September 2025, on the occasion of the French Event held alongside the London International Shipping Week in London, France and the United Kingdom took a further step forard in their joint strategy to combat cross-Channel maritime social dumping, with the signingof a declaration affirming their commitment to strengthen cooperation between the competent authorities.
This declaration, which falls within the framework of the legislative instruments adopted respectively in 2023 — the French Law No. 2023-659 of 26 July 2023 known as “the Le Gac Law », and the UK Seafarers Wages Act 2023 of 23 March 2023 — builds upon the orientations established during at the bilateral cooperation summit held in London in July 2025.
The strengthened collaboration between French control authorities (the maritime affairs and the labour inspection services) and their British counterparts (the department for transport and the maritime and coastguard agency) represents a key lever for the effectiveness of these regulatory frameworks. In particular, this declaration serves to consolidate and ensure the long-term capacity of the control officers to exchange, in real time, information arising from inspections aboard vessels, thereby optimising operational efficiency and the responsiveness of the administrations in detecting and addressing instances of social dumping.
The declaration also reflects a growing alignment of ambitions between the two countries in combating cross-Channel social dumping, in the context of proposed legislative enhancements currently under consideration in the United Kingdom. For reference, the French and British frameworks currently share a similar provision requiring compliance with the national minimum wage for vessels falling within their respective scopes of application.
France and the United Kingdom welcome this strengthened and fruitful cooperation, which contributes to the protection of seafarers’ rights, the promotion of fair social conditions, and ultimately, the enhancement of maritime safety in the strategically important cross-Channel region.