Charlotte Edwards, wife of the Lady T fishing vessel captain, has claimed that French authorities were delayed in reaching her husband's boat because migrant boats "got in their way".

Speaking to GB News, Edwards said French officials told her "they didn't get to his boat quick enough because so many migrant boats were leaving that they got in their way".

"That says it all really, doesn't it?" she added.

Her husband faced a £30,000 fine after French authorities seized his Eastbourne-based vessel in May for allegedly fishing in French waters without proper documentation.

Charlotte Edwards made the shocking revelation on GB News

Edwards revealed her husband was arrested on the boat and warned he could face a year in prison before being ordered to pay the substantial sum to secure the vessel's release.

The Lady T was intercepted by the French navy vessel Pluvier on 22 May whilst fishing for whelks in the English Channel.

French authorities alleged the British catamaran was operating without a licence in French waters off Somme Bay.

The vessel was diverted to Boulogne-sur-Mer where it was held pending prosecution.

Charlotte Edwards joined Martin Daubney on GB News

Edwards told GB News her husband "wasn't as far in as they said, he was about 800 metres in their waters".

She explained that whilst the required paperwork was "on its way", it had not arrived at the time of the seizure.

The skipper appeared in court in Boulogne-sur-Mer and was ordered to pay what Edwards described as a "deposit" of £30,000 to release the boat, with warnings the fine could increase to £63,000.

Edwards expressed frustration at the administrative complications, explaining that even after the paperwork arrived, French authorities "wanted to continue the fine".

The seizure came just days after Britain handed fishing rights over to Europe

"From what fishing used to be, it's now so hard to make money. The French have been in our waters for 12 years and it's just getting harder and harder," she told GB News.

She revealed her husband had received no assistance during the ordeal, stating: "I haven't heard anything from the British Government. He's had no support from anyone."

Despite reports suggesting officials were "glad he's being released", Edwards said "no one was there to help".

"It's all my husband has ever done," she added, highlighting the impact on their livelihood.

GB News star Martin Daubney described the situation as an "absolute French farce".

The incident occurred amid heightened tensions over fishing rights following Prime Minister Keir Starmer's agreement to grant EU vessels access to British waters for another 12 years.

French officials suggested the Lady T seizure was "tit-for-tat" action after British authorities fined a French vessel £40,000 for breaching UK maritime rules in May.

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp accused France of "shameful double standards", noting French authorities had "failed to stop 13,000 illegal immigrants crossing the channel" this year whilst swiftly intercepting the British fishing vessel.

"If the French can now intercept boats then they should start stopping the boats with illegal immigrants - as international law obliges them to do," Philp told The Telegraph.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage called the situation "all one way traffic".