Immigration Controls: Heathrow Airport
(asked on 10th June 2021) - View Source
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many additional Border Force staff have been mobilised since 17 May to reduce the queueing time at passport control in Heathrow Airport; and what is the average queueing time at passport control on arrival at Heathrow.
Answered by
Baroness Williams of Trafford
Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Border Force is ensuring that it has the right level of resources to check that passengers are compliant with our border health measures to minimise wait times at the border whilst ensuring we maintain border security and public health.
We have taken steps to make sure that there is the maximum number of additional Border Force officers possible to carry out those crucial checks, ensuring compliance with health measures, while minimizing wait time.
Since January 2020 to May 2021 Border Force overall workforce has grown by over 290 to a figure of around 9,300 FTE.
This is in addition to the return of staff from detached duty and the return of critically vulnerable staff to the front line, as well the capability to deploy resources flexibly across the United Kingdom to deal with any increase on demand.
As the Director General of Border Force stated at the Public Account Committee session on the 10th June, the average time this year for anyone travelling through Heathrow has been under 30 minutes.