Passengers leaving the UK by ferry for the mainland Europe will be subject to a passport check, which will be carried out by the ferry operator starting April 8th.
According to the UK Chamber of Shipping, the ‘exit check’ scheme, introduced by the UK Government, is being implemented so the government could claim that it delivered on a manifesto commitment. However, the Chamber said that the move would offer no benefits to passengers.
Outbound passport controls at ferry ports were removed by the Home Office in 1994 on the grounds that they were a waste of time.
“Ferry operators have worked hard to minimise the impact of the new scheme on passengers, and from today all passports will be scanned. In an effort to minimise disruption, the verification process will be phased from 25% of passengers subjected to the two stage process for the next month rising gradually until the end of June, when all passengers will have their passports scanned and verified,” the chamber said.
The UK Chamber of Shipping voiced concern that check in times for passengers could be doubled by this new processs especially on peak travel days.
“This will undoubtedly lead to delays and tailbacks through the port and beyond, with models showing that queues of up to 8km could form at the busiest times,” the chamber’s release reads.
The chamber said it has been working closely throughout with the Home Office since the inception of the scheme, and would like to see some arrangements in place so that should these large scale delays occur, a pragmatic approach can be taken to prevent queues getting out of control during peak periods.
“Travel by ferry is the hassle-free way of getting to Europe and is increasingly popular. Freight traffic is also growing strongly, now back to pre-recession levels. The government has a clear duty not to expose passengers to the dangers of being held up in long queues on the motorway on summer days, and we need to be confident that ministers will live up to that duty, ” Tim Reardon, Director of Policy for Taxation, Ferry and Cruise commented.