Dover delays – latest news: Brexit is a factor behind queues, port officials say - The Independent

Port of Dover declares critical incident as high levels of traffic caused lengthy delays

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Dover officials have hit back at claims made by the home secretary that it was “not fair” to blame disruption at the port on Brexit.

A spokesperson for the port said that processing times for each passenger had increased since Britain left the EU and it was a factor behind the disruption.

It comes after Suella Braverman said in general “things have been operating very smoothly at the border” and she does not think “this is the state of affairs to go forward”.

“What I would say is at acute times when there is a lot of pressure crossing the Channel, whether that’s on the tunnel or ferries, then I think that there’s always going to be a backup and I just urge everybody to be a bit patient while the ferry companies work their way through the backlog,” she told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme.

Meanwhile, queues at the entrance to the Port of Dover have cleared after a weekend of disruption, according to one of the ferry companies hit by delays.

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Dover officials dismiss Braverman’s claim that queues ‘not caused by Brexit’

Port of Dover officials have hit back at claims by the home secretary that long queues at the port are not a result of Brexit.

A spokesperson for the port said the processing time for each passenger had increased since Britain left the European Union, and that this was a factor in the disruption.

Suella Braverman had earlier said that Brexit was not to blame for several days of travel chaos at Dover – insisting that traffic gridlock would not be a regular occurrence on the border with France.

Our political correspondent Adam Forrest reports:

Namita Singh3 April 2023 04:30

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Lack of government planning to blame for queues - Labour

A lack of planning by the government contributed to the large queues seen at the Port of Dover over the weekend, Labour has suggested.

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said ministers should work more closely with France to avoid further delays in the future.

Pressed on how the opposition would act differently on cross-channel traffic, as it has suggested it would not to restore freedom of movement with the EU, Ms  Cooper described the situation as "a total nightmare for people trying to travel this weekend".

She told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: "We can’t have this every time there is an Easter holiday, every time there is a summer holiday.

"It is particularly the lack of planning around coach parties and that really affects school children as well."

Pressed for solutions, Ms Cooper added: "I would urge the Home Office, the transport department, to talk with Dover and also with their French counterparts to make sure that we don’t get a re-run of this."

Matt Mathers3 April 2023 09:48

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Coach passengers finally get in to Port of Dover after huge delays

Coach passengers who have been stuck in queues of up to eight hours in Dover have finally made it in to the port.

Traffic delays began on Friday and passengers hoping to get away for their Easter break on Sunday night will face a few more hours waiting to be processed at border controls and then get on a ferry.

Full report:

Matt Mathers3 April 2023 09:20

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Watch: Simon Calder explains Port of Dover queues

The Independent’s travel correspondent Simon Calder has explained why there were queues at the Port of Dover.

He said that passport checks were slowing down the process and that the scenes at the weekend which “very sadly, could have been predicted”.

Watch the full clip here:

Matt Mathers3 April 2023 08:20

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Brexit has made traffic control harder - Port of Dover CEO

Brexit has made managing traffic at the Port of Dover more difficult, its chief executive has said.

Doug Bannister said all passports had to be checked before vehicles could leave the UK for France.

He said this Easter had been busier than last year following the lifting of Covid restrictions. More comments below:

Matt Mathers3 April 2023 07:42

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Re-cap: why was there gridlock at Dover again?

Post-Brexit passport rules mean it typically takes 20 minutes to process passengers on a coach – far longer than before, writes travel correspondent Simon Calder.

Read Simon’s full piece here:

Matt Mathers3 April 2023 07:30

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Port of Dover queues clear after weekend of disruption

Queues at the entrance to the Port of Dover have cleared after a weekend of disruption, according to one of the ferry companies hit by delays.

Coach passengers were forced to spend hours waiting to enter the port, be processed and board ferries over the weekend.

This morning P&O Ferries tweeted: “There are no longer any queues at the entrance to the Port of Dover. We apologise for the wait times experienced this weekend.”

Namita Singh3 April 2023 07:00

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‘Forty coaches awaiting immigration processing’ at Port of Dover

There are currently about 40 coaches in the Port awaiting immigration processing at the border, tweeted Port of Dover travel. “The current waiting time for these vehicles is around 4 hours.”

Namita Singh3 April 2023 06:30

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‘No longer queues at entrance’

UK’s largest ferry operators P&O Ferries issued a statement notifying that “there are no longer any queues at the entrance to the Port of Dover”.

“We apologise for the wait times experienced this weekend,” it posted on Twitter.

Namita Singh3 April 2023 06:00

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ICYMI: ‘Frustrated’ Dover officials blame ‘lengthy French border processes’ as travellers stranded for over 16 hours

Officials at the Port of Dover say they are “deeply frustrated” about significant traffic delays that have seen thousands of travellers queueing for up to 16 hours as the Easter getaway begins.

A critical incident was declared overnight on Friday, and operators P&O Ferries and DFDS Seaways reported delays to ferry and coach services, citing bad weather and hold-ups at French border control as partly responsible.

In a statement on Saturday, the port blamed the delays on “lengthy French border processes and [the] sheer volume” of people travelling.

More in this report:

Namita Singh3 April 2023 05:30

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2023-04-03 08:20:07Z
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Teachers set to strike again as National Education Union members reject government pay offer - Sky News

Teachers in England are set to strike again this month after members of the National Education Union (NEU) overwhelmingly rejected a pay offer.

Some 98% of those who voted rejected it - and strikes are now scheduled for 27 April and 2 May.

The union had called the offer "insulting" and that it amounted to a £1,000 payment for the current year and a 4.3% rise for most teachers next year.

Government has gone 'as far as [they] can' on pay - cost of living latest

It said the proposal was not fully funded and that between 42% and 58% of schools would have to make cuts to afford it.

The government has called it "a fair and reasonable offer" and "a good deal for teachers".

More than 195,000 members voted in the ballot (a 66% turnout), with over 191,000 rejecting it.

Union bosses, speaking in Harrogate, said they were putting the Education Secretary Gillian Keegan "on notice".

"NEU members are telling you clearly, and in ever bigger numbers, your offer does not cut the mustard," said general secretary Kevin Courtney.

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"[The offer] does not deal with the acute shortage in our schools - shortages that parents and parents see every single day," added co-general secretary Dr Mary Bousted.

Addressing the fact other UK nations have been offered a higher package, she added: "Gillian, why do you think teachers in England are worth less than teachers in Scotland and Wales."

They said there was still time to avoid the strikes if the government makes a better offer.

The NEU is made up of teachers, further education lecturers, support staff and teaching assistants.

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2023-04-03 08:04:25Z
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Rishi Sunak criticises political correctness over grooming gangs - BBC

PA Media

By Jemma Crew & Michael Sheils McNamee

BBC News

Rishi Sunak is to set out plans for a police taskforce to tackle grooming gangs, as he said political correctness had hindered efforts so far.

Specialist officers will be sent to help local forces with their investigations, the government said.

It said ethnicity data will help ensure abusers do not evade justice due to "cultural sensitivities".

Labour said it called for expanded police specialist teams nearly a decade ago but the government "failed to act".

The prime minister will be in Leeds and Greater Manchester on Monday to meet victims and local police, and to mark the launch of the taskforce, which will be supported by the National Crime Agency.

Ahead of the launch, Mr Sunak said: "The safety of women and girls is paramount.

"For too long, political correctness has stopped us from weeding out vile criminals who prey on children and young women.

"We will stop at nothing to stamp out these dangerous gangs."

The plans also include introducing legislation to make membership of a grooming gang an aggravating factor during sentencing, Downing Street said.

And it said better data on the make up of grooming gangs, including ethnicity, would also be used to help ensure suspects "cannot hide behind cultural sensitivities as a way to evade justice".

But Sabah Kaiser, ethnic minority ambassador to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA), said it was "very, very dangerous" to turn child sexual abuse "into a matter of colour".

She told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme: "Child sexual abuse does not have a skin colour, it doesn't have a religion, it doesn't have a culture. Child sexual abuse does not discriminate."

Sir Peter Wanless, chief executive of the NSPCC, said it was "really important that by raising an issue such as race we don't create other blind spots".

He told BBC Breakfast: "Because for sure there are many, many predators, who prey on vulnerable children, who are from a range of cultural backgrounds.

"And there are many victims, who are not white girls, who deserve our attention and support.

"So my plea would be is that we are blind to nothing as we address issues of child sexual abuse."

It comes after the government said people who work with children in England will be legally required to report child sexual abuse or face prosecution, under its plans.

• Not reporting child abuse must be crime – inquiry

The move - which is subject to a consultation - was recommended last year by IICSA.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman told the BBC she wanted to correct one of the "biggest national scandals".

Ms Braverman said while the fault lay with the perpetrators for "carrying out heinous and vile acts of depravity", there was also "a wilful turning of the blind eye" among authorities.

She said that in towns around the country, "vulnerable white girls living in troubled circumstances have been abused, drugged, raped, and exploited" by networks of gangs of rapists, which she claimed were "overwhelmingly" made up of British-Pakistani males.

Ms Braverman added that "cultural sensitivities" and concerns about "being called bigoted" had played a role in high-profile abuse scandals including in Rochdale and Rotherham.

An independent inquiry found at least 1,400 children had been subjected to sexual abuse in Rotherham between 1997 and 2013, with the perpetrators predominantly men of Pakistani heritage.

Later, Home Office-commissioned research found that, more generally, there was not enough evidence to suggest members of grooming gangs were more likely to be Asian or black than other ethnicities.

Dr Ella Cockbain, associate professor at University College London's Department of Security and Crime Science, said the government was "disregarding and contradicting" its own research.

She told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "She (Ms Braverman) is choosing to mainstream hard-right talking points, and to push discredited stereotypes. "That is really dangerous and reductive. "It allows other offenders to get away with abuse."

The Labour Mayor of West Yorkshire, Tracy Brabin, called Ms Braverman's comments a "dog whistle" - meaning a coded message designed to appeal to a certain group.

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said the government's anti-grooming plans were not "a serious strategy" and accused ministers of "chasing headlines".

She told the BBC the measures were "far too inadequate for the scale of the problem".

She appeared to back the collection of ethnicity data, saying widespread data collection should be happening, but went on to say: "The government has to show some proper leadership and the Home Office hasn't been showing that leadership".

The Liberal Democrats' home affairs spokesperson Alistair Carmichael said they supported steps to crack down on those responsible, but said: "Unless the government tackles the backlog in our courts and restores community policing, too many criminals will continue to evade justice."

Related Topics

• Child abuse
• Independent Inquiry into Child Sex Abuse

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2023-04-03 08:18:01Z
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Dover delays news – live: Unfair to blame port chaos on Brexit, says Suella Braverman - The Independent

Port of Dover declares critical incident as high levels of traffic caused lengthy delays

Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK

Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight

Suella Braverman has said it is not “fair” to blame the hours-long delays at Dover port on Brexit.

The home secretary said in general “things have been operating very smoothly at the border” and she does not think “this is the state of affairs to go forward”.

“What I would say is at acute times when there is a lot of pressure crossing the Channel, whether that’s on the tunnel or ferries, then I think that there’s always going to be a backup and I just urge everybody to be a bit patient while the ferry companies work their way through the backlog,” she told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme.

This morning, port authorities warned passengers are still facing long queues after extra overnight ferries failed to clear the backlog of waiting coaches.

This afternoon, the Port of Dover posted an update saying the waiting times for coaches were around four hours.

Operators P&O Ferries and DFDS Seaways reported delays to ferry and coach services, citing bad weather and hold-ups at French border controls as partly responsible.

1680423668

Watch: Not ‘fair’ to blame Dover chaos on Brexit, Suella Braverman says

Not ‘fair’ to blame Dover chaos on Brexit, Suella Braverman says

Maryam Zakir-Hussain2 April 2023 09:21

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Easter travel chaos: All the rail, road and flight disruption taking place over the holidays

Transport strikes, rail engineering work and traffic congestion are combining to make Easter 2023 a very challenging time to travel.

French air-traffic controllers – who look after airspace used by tens of thousands of British passengers every day – continue to cause delays and cancellations of European flights. Italian aviation workers will strike on Sunday, causing more disruption.

Our travel correspondent Simon Calder reports:

Maryam Zakir-Hussain2 April 2023 17:15

1680450308

Brexit not to blame for Dover chaos, says Suella Braverman – who claims smooth operations since EU exit

The home secretary claimed it was “unfair” to blame the post-Brexit passport checks for the chaos as the port as Easter holidaymakers get stuck in misery at the border with France.

Extra sailings ran overnight from Dover to Calais to try to clear the huge backlog, partly blamed on bad weather affecting ferry crossings and a higher-than-expected surge in bookings.

Travel experts have also blamed the inspection and stamping of individual passports after Brexit. Dover chief executive Doug Bannister said the post-Brexit checks have made processing “more challenging”.

Asked if she accepted Brexit as a cause of the chaos, Ms Braverman told Sky News’ Sophy Ridge on Sunday: “I don’t think it’s fair to say that this is an adverse effect of Brexit.”

The Tory cabinet minister added: “We’ve had many years now since leaving the EU, and there’s been on the whole, very good operations and processes at the border.”

Maryam Zakir-Hussain2 April 2023 16:45

1680448508

School trip cancelled due to health concerns for tired coach drivers following excruciating delays

Charity director Maggie Gordon-Walker, of Brighton, said her son’s school trip Italy’s Folgarida area had to be cancelled due to health concerns for the tired coach drivers caused by the delays.

Ms Gordon-Walker, who feels the delays have been “exacerbated hugely because of Brexit red tape”, told the PA news agency: “They arrived at Dover around 8pm yesterday (Saturday) and were shunted off to a services near Folkestone.

“They returned to Dover around 2am and stayed in the coach in the queue until 9.20am this morning, when it was decided the trip had to be cancelled on the grounds of health and safety because the coach drivers would have needed a nine-hour rest break upon arrival in France, so the school party would have been travelling for over 48 hours without sleep.

Ms Gordon-Walker, who had been paying for the trip in instalments, added: “My son is knackered and deflated. I feel sorry for him and angry that this has happened.”

Maryam Zakir-Hussain2 April 2023 16:15

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Frustrated parents criticise Dover port Twitter for not being ‘realistic'

Frustrated parents on Twitter have hit out at the Port of Dover for not being “realistic” with how long delays will last.

Earlier this afternoon, the port tweeted that border processing is currently taking four hours for coaches.

However, several parents left comments which suggest otherwise.

One person said: “Please be realistic about the time it takes to get the coaches to enter the port in addition to this time when you provide updates. My son has been on a coach since 5pm yesterday and has still not left Dover.”

Another parent said: “The coach my boys are on has just got through border controls - that was 11 hours from entering the port. Please can you be a little more realistic & honest with the waiting times (& do something proactive about it next time!)”

Maryam Zakir-Hussain2 April 2023 15:50

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Dover port chaos due to bad planning by government, Lisa Nandy says

Shadow levelling up secretary Lisa Nandy said “a range of factors” have caused the delays, but she claimed the Government had not planned for what was going to happen post-Brexit.

She told Sophy Ridge On Sunday that ministers had “known for a very long time that they needed to make sure that there were resources in place to deal with additional paperwork checks”.

She added: “The point is not whether we left the European Union or not. The point was that we left with a Government that made big promises and once again didn’t deliver.

“I really feel for the families that are trying to get away for a Easter break, people who have been caught up in this chaos, people whose livelihoods are threatened.

“It didn’t need to be this way.

“If the Government got a grip, got down to brass tacks and started doing their actual job, all these things could be avoided.”

Maryam Zakir-Hussain2 April 2023 14:53

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Update from Port of Dover

The Port of Dover has said border processing times are now at around four hours.

Maryam Zakir-Hussain2 April 2023 14:15

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Why is there gridlock at Dover again and will it always be like this?

The delays coincided with the start of the Easter holidays for many schools, which brought a surge of coaches to the Kent port

The Port of Dover declared a Critical Incident and says it “has been working round the clock with the ferry operators and border agencies to get coach passengers on their way, with extra sailings being put on overnight to help clear the backlog”.

There is no longer any backlog of cars and trucks, but the statement from the port added: “There remain pockets of coaches still waiting to be processed with smaller volumes of coaches expected today.”

Our travel correspondent Simon Calder reports:

Maryam Zakir-Hussain2 April 2023 13:56

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Keir Starmer urges government to ‘get a grip’ on delays at Dover

Labour’s Keir Starmer urged the government to “get a grip” on the situation at Dover as coach traffic faced “significant delays” that could last up to 16 hours.

Thousands of travellers were queuing at the port as the Easter getaway begins, after a critical incident was declared overnight on Friday.

Operators P&O Ferries and DFDS Seaways reported delays to ferry and coach services, citing bad weather and hold-ups at French border controls as partly responsible.

Later on Saturday morning, a spokesperson said that queues were easing.

Keir Starmer urges government to ‘get a grip’ on delays at Dover

Labour’s Keir Starmer urged the government to “get a grip” on the situation at Dover as coach traffic faced “significant delays” that could last up to 16 hours. Thousands of travellers were queuing at the port as the Easter getaway begins, after a critical incident was declared overnight on Friday. Operators P&O Ferries and DFDS Seaways reported delays to ferry and coach services, citing bad weather and hold-ups at French border controls as partly responsible. Later on Saturday morning, a spokesperson said that queues were easing. Sign up to our newsletters.

Maryam Zakir-Hussain2 April 2023 13:25

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Why Brexit is to blame for holiday traffic chaos at Dover

Simon Calder, also known as The Man Who Pays His Way, explains the reason behind the hours-long queues at Dover this weekend.

When it’s the start of the Easter holidays and you’re a transport hub and you’re trending on Twitter, you know things are not going well.

Thousands of coach passengers endured a miserable wait, many of them through the night. Factors as diverse as stormy weather and the French were blamed for preventing travellers from getting away on much-needed holidays.

Maryam Zakir-Hussain2 April 2023 12:47

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2023-04-02 15:45:08Z
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Nicola Sturgeon resignation: online rumours played a part, says ex-SNP leader - The Guardian

The former first minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon, has said the need to seek more privacy in the wake of internet rumours was “part of the reason” for her resignation.

Sturgeon surprisingly resigned as leader of the Scottish National party in February, citing the funeral of independence activist Allan Angus as the moment that cemented her decision.

Now the former minister has told a new BBC Scotland podcast that online gossip about her had been “part of the reason” behind the decision.

“I’m not naive, I’m not of the view that I will step down one day and be completely anonymous the next day, I understand the realities of what I have done and I’ll still be in parliament, but I want to have a bit more privacy.

“I want to have a bit more anonymity and I just want to protect some of what people take for granted in their lives that I’ve forgotten to have.”

Among the claims she dismissed in the podcast were that she was a “secret lesbian” and had an extramarital relationship with a female French diplomat with the pair buying a house from tennis star Andy Murray’s mother, Judy, as a love nest.

Other rumours spread about Sturgeon said she had a global property portfolio and had a superinjunction in place to hide the truth.

“I read accounts of my life on social media and I think, you know, it is so much more glamorous sounding and so much more exciting,” she said.

Sturgeon was replaced as first minister this week by Humza Yousaf.

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2023-04-02 06:13:00Z
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Afghanistan: Three British men being held in Taliban custody - including 'danger tourist' who returned after army evacuation - Sky News

Three British men - including so-called "danger tourist" Miles Routledge - are being held in Taliban custody in Afghanistan.

The other two men are charity medic Kevin Cornwell and another unnamed UK national who manages a hotel in Kabul.

They are all believed to have been held by Taliban secret police since January in separate incidents.

A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) spokesperson said: "We are working hard to secure consular contact with British nationals detained in Afghanistan and we are supporting families."

Scott Richards from the Presidium Network non-profit organisation, which is assisting Mr Cornwell and the unnamed Briton, told Sky News that he believes the pair are in good health and being well treated.

But he added: "There has been no meaningful contact [with the men], there has been no access by international monitoring agencies... and there's been no other form of access to the individuals to date."

"We're very hopeful that contact will be made," he added.

His organisation hopes that a positive development in the situation could coincide with the end of Ramadan and the celebration of Eid.

Image: Routledge had to be airlifted from Afghanistan when the US pulled out in 2021

Mr Routledge, 23, has gained fame - and attracted controversy - by travelling to dangerous countries and posting about it online.

In August 2021, he was on a "holiday" in Afghanistan when he was caught up in the chaos in the capital as the Taliban took control of the country.

He chose the war-torn country having looked up a list of the most dangerous places to visit in the world, despite the Taliban taking control of more and more of the country at the time.

Mr Routledge thanked the British Army after he was among those to leave during the Kabul airlift.

He appears to have returned to the country since then.

Read more:
Woman fears for her life if she is sent back to Afghanistan
Taliban leader tells officials to sack their sons

Mr Cornwell, 53, was arrested at his hotel by officers from the Taliban's General Directorate of Intelligence on 11 January.

He is accused of having an illegal firearm in the safe in his room, but his family say he had been granted a licence for the firearm.

Mr Richards said this was down to a "misunderstanding" and the licence may have become separated from the firearm during the search.

The FCDO continues to advise UK citizens against all travel to Afghanistan based on the security risks involved, including the possibility of detention by the Taliban authorities.

"At this point in time it would be unwise for anyone to enter into Afghanistan that doesn't understand the culture, that doesn't understand these things, because it can change on you very, very quickly," Mr Richards warned.

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2023-04-02 05:48:45Z
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Reading marina death: Man arrested on suspicion of murder - BBC

Geograph/Steve Daniels

A man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a woman was found dead at a marina.

Officers recovered the body from water at the Thames and Kennet Marina in Caversham, Reading, shortly after being called to the scene at 10:30 BST.

Police have put a scene watch in place while investigations are carried out and appealed for information.

The force said a 61-year-old man from Caversham was arrested on suspicion of murder and remains in custody.

Det Insp Richard Pickering said: "We are in the very early stages of this investigation, and although we have made an arrest, I would urge the public not to speculate on the circumstances of the woman's death, which is being treated as unexplained at this time.

"There is currently a scene-watch in place at the location, and will be in place for some time while our investigation continues.

"Although the death is being treated as unexplained, we do not believe there to be any danger to the local community, and we are conducting a full and thorough investigation to ascertain the full circumstances of this tragic incident."

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Related Topics

• Reading
• Caversham

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• Thames Valley Police

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2023-04-01 15:54:59Z
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