Electronic Passport Control Systems

Debate between Lord Murray of Blidworth and Baroness Randerson

Wednesday 7th June 2023 Lords Chamber

[Lord Murray of Blidworth (Con)]

My noble friend makes a valid point, and I will certainly take that back to the department.

[Baroness Randerson (LD)]

My Lords, this was a short-lived issue but there is a long-term issue for our airports, ports and Eurostar around longer times trying to get through passport control since Brexit. This week saw the final Eurostar Disneyland Paris train from London. The service is no longer viable because of longer check-in times, and Ebbsfleet and Ashford International have in effect been mothballed as Eurostar stopping points. Does the Minister agree that, instead of a declining network, the Government should be encouraging Eurostar to increase its network, because that is the most environmentally friendly way of travelling to and from Europe? What are the Government doing to renegotiate passport control arrangements to make travel easier in the future?

[Lord Murray of Blidworth (Con)]

International rail infrastructure is a very valuable part of our international travel systems. I am afraid it is beyond the ken of the Home Office to require Eurostar to run any particular route, but Border Force does facilitate the clearance of passports, as I have already said, in Brussels and Paris, and this works very effectively. As a result of the agreement with our French friends, they run checks in London, and those are sometimes the subject of delays. That can impact the running of trains; I entirely accept that.

UK-EU: Revised Passenger Requirements

Debate between Lord Murray of Blidworth and Baroness Randerson

Tuesday 21st March 2023 Lords Chamber

[Lord Murray of Blidworth (Con)]

I understand that the United Kingdom has always taken the view that the Europeans are our friends and we treat them in the same way we always did. That, sadly, has not been the approach adopted by some of our European and EEA colleagues.

[Baroness Randerson (LD)]

My Lords, in his first Answer the Minister referred to working with port operators, but of course, the Channel Tunnel also deals with 10 million passengers a year and is a conduit for £140 billion of UK-EU trade. The operators of the Channel Tunnel calculate that 85% of their customers will have to pre-register and be subject to the necessary border controls. This is obviously a huge task, so can the noble Lord give us some details of his Government’s discussions with the EU? Are there any plans for a phased introduction, and to try to defer this whole huge change until after the Paris Olympics?

Eurostar St Pancras: Border Control

Debate between Lord Murray of Blidworth and Baroness Randerson

Tuesday 28th February 2023 Lords Chamber

[Lord Murray of Blidworth (Con)]

I thank the noble Viscount for raising that important point. We anticipate that future digitisation, both in the EU system and in our own electronic travel authorisation scheme, will accelerate the rate at which people can cross the border. We are implementing infrastructure in Paris which will be able to accelerate the rate at which people can pass through our e-gates.

[Baroness Randerson (LD)]

The Minister seems remarkably complacent in his answers. I invite him to travel more frequently on Eurostar to see the reality of the situation. Looking forward, the new EES will be accompanied next year by the European Travel Information and Authorisation System, or ETIAS. That will cost us €7 each to visit EU countries, as well as introducing new systems that require fingerprints. Can the Minister tell us what preparations the Government are making to expand capacity at border control for these more comprehensive checks and to raise public awareness of the new requirements?

[Lord Murray of Blidworth (Con)]

As the noble Baroness will be aware, the European scheme requires people in advance to obtain these authorisations and to deposit the biometrics. It is not anticipated that this will cause delays at the border at St Pancras, as far as I am aware. As I say, for the reasons I gave to the noble Viscount, the anticipation is that increased digitisation will lead to faster use of e-gates.