News / Relief for supply chains as congestion fears from people-processing at Dover ease

Changes in processing France-bound holidaymakers departing from Dover could offer a small win to British supply chains as the country moves to reset relations with the EU.

Yesterday, the new UK government confirmed that French border officials would be permitted to process passengers at Dover’s expanded Western Docks ahead of the introduction of the EU’s new Entry Exit System (EES).

Nichola Mallon, head of trade and devolved policy at Logistics UK, welcomed the decision, describing “anything that helps ease congestion at the port of Dover” as a positive.

Sources in UK logistics had warned that looming changes to the EES, requiring every non-EU citizen to physically register biometric data at the border, threatened to bring chaos and supply chain disruption, “especially at the short straits” of Dover-Calais.

After Labour’s electoral victory this month, the EU offered a reprieve, temporarily postponing EES implementation, initially for a one month, from 6 October to 10 November, but the launch has subsequently been shifted from a firm date to “autumn”.

For those in the logistics sector, the delay and now the UK opening the western docks to French border officials has been taken as a positive sign.

One source told The Loadstar it indicated signs that the icy relations from Brexit were thawing, with one haulier adding that it suggested the EU commissioners had “got over their sulk” after Brexit.

The haulier told The Loadstar: “In the long-term they will do what is in the EU’s interest, which is smooth trade between it and its biggest customer.”

However, while the decision has eased some concerns, both Ms Mallon and the British Ports Association’s Richard Ballantyne have re-emphasised that the best way to avoid chaos was to remove the need for biometric data to be collected at the port, rather than at remote locations.

Mr Ballantyne told The Loadstar: “To mitigate any issues, an app-based solution which enables the uploading of biometric and other information remotely and in advance appears to be the most suitable solution, but this will need some further and accelerated work to achieve.”

Ms Mallon urged government to share its data analysis and scenario modelling surrounding EES implementation to help industry better coordinate.

She added: “It is now critical that the government does all it can to secure a phased approach to the planned implementation of EES this autumn, and that industry gets clarity on what mitigations will be put in place to reduce congestion and disruption.”