Inside Eurotunnel’s battle to avert border chaos ahead of launch of new EU passport controls

Evening Standard

Channel tunnel bosses have pledged that new border controls will have “minimum impact” on Britons travelling to and from the Continent.However, European tourists returning home, and other EU passport holders, will be fast-tracked through dedicated lanes, meaning they may be able to catch an earlier train than British passport holders.

Transcript

00:00If you're travelling between the UK and the EU and you're a British citizen, the rules are about to change.

00:06On the 12th of October, the EES system comes into play and that means big changes here at Folkestone

00:12if you're about to use the shuttle or at St Pancras if you're using Eurostar or at the port of Dover

00:19if you're about to get a ferry to France.

00:21Now, what do these changes involve? Well, essentially two things.

00:24One, you'll have to have a picture taken of your face.

00:27Two, you'll have to have your fingerprints scanned.

00:30You'll only have to do this once, but then when you're coming on each journey to and from the EU

00:34you will still have to have your face checked against your passport.

00:38British travellers will also have to undergo the same checks at airports

00:42but it will feel much more part of the normal process because the checks will be done when you land in the new country.

00:49But here at Folkestone, because this is technically part of France, the French border starts in the UK

00:55just as at St Pancras, it will feel a bit different.

00:58So if you're driving through to France and about to put your car or your camper van on the shuttle train

01:04then you'll have to get out of your vehicle with your family, your friends, whoever you're travelling with

01:09and everybody at the first time will have to have their face scanned and give their fingerprints.

01:15Now, this does start on the 12th of October but the hope is that this will be ramped up slowly

01:20and it will take six months to come in, so it shouldn't affect families travelling over the October half term school holidays.

01:26This is happening for everyone, you know, not being an EU resident, entering or leaving EU

01:32so for all the countries, not only France, but Germany, you know, everywhere, if you are not, you know, based,

01:38I mean, if you don't have a European passport.

01:40The big question, of course, is how long will this delay your journey getting to the continent?

01:45Well, bosses here at Eurotunnel say it should only be about two minutes extra per passenger

01:50and that's for the first time you use these booths.

01:53It should be easier for each consecutive trip because once you've registered

01:56you won't have to register again for another three years.

01:59But what it will mean is that any EU passengers or EU families driving out of the UK

02:06will be fast-tracked through to the border checks, whereas British families will have to queue up

02:12to go through all these checks first, which may, of course, lead to quite a bit of tension

02:16as people essentially jump the queue and get home or get to their destination more quickly.

02:22It has been launched for security reasons.

02:24The goal was to know for Europe at each time, you know, who is on the European territory and as you can imagine

02:32in the world we live now, unfortunately, we must have that kind of control.

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