The authorities pass the buck. Facing the miles of queue of holidaymakers in Dover, thehe British port on Friday July 22 accused the French authorities of “ruin the vacation" many families. Saturday the rUnion officials, port officials and French authorities have highlighted the role of Brexit in these major traffic difficulties.
This weekend marks the first weekend of major departures for UK citizens without coronavirus travel restrictions since Brexit came into effect. The agreement signed between the EU and London means longer controls than when the United Kingdom was part of the European Union.
The prefect of the Hauts-de-France region, Georges-François Leclerc, conceded a delay in the full implementation of the system scheduled for Friday due to a signaling incident in the Channel Tunnel and an accident of traffic on the M20 motorway. “Who can believe that because the French reinforcements are an hour late, the whole system is derailed?”he wondered on Saturday, during a press conference in Lille.
“The work has been done on the French side”, he assured. The workforce has been increased, from 120 usually to 200 on summer weekends, during which 9 to 10,000 vehicles are expected per day, instead of 4 to 5,000 usually.
“Last year, there was the Covid: we discover the Brexit”
Georges-François Leclerc, prefect of Hauts-de-Franceat a press conference
Despite explanations from the French authorities, British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, campaigning to succeed Prime Minister Boris Johnson, persisted in incriminating France. “The fact is that the French authorities have not put enough personnel at the border”, she said, believing that it is up to France to resolve the situation. “I am very clear with them on this subject”she added.
But for Lucy Moreton, of the British union ISU, which represents border agents, these disturbances result in a way “predictable” of Brexit. “This is the moment he chose to strike”, she told the BBC. Port of Dover chief executive Dough Bannister, who had accused the French authorities of understaffing the number of French border police officers, nevertheless stressed that it should be recognized that “in a post-Brexit environment”the delays for boarding will increase.