Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent progress has been made on development of the Sevington lorry park and checking facility in Ashford; and how many lorries a day is that site processing as at 28 June 2021.

Sevington Inland Border Facility (IBF) has operated well since it opened in January, conducting COVID-19 testing for hauliers leaving the UK. This has been an important operation in order to keep freight moving in times when the pandemic has peaked, and countries have had to instigate COVID-19 border protocols.

HMRC successfully transitioned their operations from Waterbrook IBF to Sevington IBF in March. The total number of vehicles processed by HMRC at Sevington on 28 June was 723, with a total of 676 COVID-19 tests being carried out on the same day.

Landscaping commenced with the beginning of the planting season, which is an important part of our environmental strategy to mitigate against visual impacts and to enhance biodiversity. The Department is also reviewing lighting on-site following feedback from local residents and the public and will be looking to implement some changes shortly.

Construction of the Border Control Post (BCP) has been progressing well with structures for all buildings now in place and accommodation buildings being erected. Completion of the BCP is on course for the end of the year.