The French border control zone at the Port of Dover is to be expanded to reduce the risk of queues at peak times when the EU’s Entry/Exit System (EES) rules come into force in November, the government says.
Home Office minister Seema Malhotra will lay a Statutory Instrument in Parliament on Monday to allow French border officials to operate in an expanded zone at the Port of Dover.
The port plans to change the location of passport control for passengers arriving to board ferries from Dover’s Eastern Docks to a new border control zone at its Western Docks as part of major upgrades to its port infrastructure, including building bespoke facilities to carry out the checks. Car passengers will be checked in their cars using agents with tablets.
The minister said that her officials in the Home Office were working hard to minimise excessive queues as much as possible.
The introduction of the EES has been repeatedly delayed, most recently from October to November amid fears that it could severely impact October half-term travel.
Nichola Mallon, Head of Trade and Devolved Policy at business group Logistics UK, said: “The Short Straits is a critical UK-EU supply chain route and anything that helps ease congestion at the Port of Dover is to be welcomed. A quarter of all food imported into the UK from the EU passes through the Port of Dover and Eurotunnel, and delays at the border have knock-on effects which can disrupt supply chains nationwide.
“The increase in the border zone area will help with the flow of traffic within the port, but with the system set to be rolled out without the availability of an app or web-based registration system, similar to “online check in” which everyone is familiar with nowadays, queues and delays at peak periods are inevitable. It is now critical that the government does all it can to secure a phased approach to the planned implementation of EES this autumn, and that industry gets clarity on what mitigations will be put in place to reduce congestion and disruption. The industry also needs confirmation on the date when the registration app will be ready and rolled out.
“The logistics industry is still pressing government to share its data analysis and scenario modelling with key strategic partners as an urgent priority. This will enable partners on the ground and industry to coordinate planning and response efforts, and government must provide sufficient resources to flex up the response as needed so that the nation’s supply chains are protected.”
