France and the United Kingdom blame each other for the “chaos” in Dover
On the port of Dover, vehicles queue to cross the border between Great Britain and France, July 24, 2022. REUTERS - HENRY NICHOLLS
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
After two days of traffic jams at the port of Dover in England, traffic returned to normal on Sunday July 24.
On Friday and Saturday, it took several hours to enter the port and cross the border for vacationers.
Endless queues that caused a diplomatic dispute between France and the United Kingdom, which reject responsibility for the situation.
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"
The new normal is chaos
",
headlines The Guardian
as if to announce the color of the holidays, reports our correspondent in London,
Sidonie Gaucher
.
The “chaos” is long queues at passport control, traffic jams over several tens of kilometers, and not enough resources.
The administration of the port of Dover still wants to reassure travelers: after two days of traffic jams: its summer plan will work for the rest of the holidays.
In particular, it provides for police reinforcements to make the passage of vehicles through the Channel Tunnel more fluid.
Sunak and Truss speak with one voice
For the English, the French police are responsible for the delays in boarding and are seen accused of “
ruining the holidays of the British
”
In the midst of a contest for
the Conservative Party presidency
, former Chancellor Rishi Sunak says the French "
must stop blaming Brexit and start providing staff
", and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss blames a "
lack of resources at the border
”.
It is partly true.
The prefect of the Hauts-de-France region recognizes this.
Of the 200 French police officers scheduled, 90 arrived 1 hour late on Friday morning.
He still questions: “
Who can believe that because we are a little late, the whole system is derailed?
»
Trucks held up in England
The French Minister of Transport, Clément Beaune, agrees.
According to him, this situation is a consequence of Brexit.
Since the
exit of the United Kingdom from the European Union
, it is no longer enough to show your identity card to cross the border.
Every traveler must have their passport stamped.
And it takes longer.
The Port of Dover had asked for £33m (€39m) to upgrade the port and deal with Brexit pressures.
But he only received £33,000 (€39,000) in December 2020, the equivalent of 0.1% of what he asked for.
In order to avoid new traffic jams for holidaymakers, several thousand trucks are still held up on the motorway in England.
The French authorities are mobilized to control our borders and facilitate the traffic as much as possible.
I discussed this constructively with my counterpart @grantshapps 🇫🇷🇬🇧
But France is not responsible for #Brexit.
pic.twitter.com/6FIBZ7RnKG
– Clement Beaune (@CBaune) July 23, 2022
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