Lille loophole - illegal immigration

[s1962a]

Link

I was amazed when I read this. A person can get on a train at Brussels and get off at St Pancras without any passport checks at our end at all. Our border agency has also been threatened by the Belgians for trying to do something about it as well.

[Le TVR]

Given that the UKBA staff were trying to stop people in BELGIUM then I'm not surprised that Belgian police intervened

Many times I have used the tunnel early morning and there has been no-one on either border checking passports.

[deltaevo16]

Nothing really suprises me at all anymore, scary that this has been going on since 2001. As far as immigration
goes our hands are tied by Brussels. The Government make some noise, but silently another 100,000 or more arrive

[marshalla]

Le TVR said:

Given that the UKBA staff were trying to stop people in BELGIUM then I'm not surprised that Belgian police intervened

Absolutely - the place to do the checks is at St. Pancras if they're that bothered.

I haven't noticed much increase in terrorist attacks inside the Schengen area since the internal borders went down - have I missed something ?

IMNSHO the relaxation of checks on private planes coming into the UK is far worse than this : http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tees-15752319

Edited by marshalla on Thursday 8th December 09:05

[anonymous-user]

Why dont we have an airport style border control in place?

[arfur sleep]

It's been known about for 10 years and yet no-one has actually done anything about it?

Sadly, I'm not surprised in the slightest. It's just another "FFS" aimed squarely at the politicians and the high ups in UKBA because obviously nobody there followed up or pushed the issue forward.

And the stuff regarding private planes is, as pointed out, scarier.

[hornetrider]

Just reading this myself - unbelievable it hasn't been picked up before.

[gtdc]

Why are they not checked in London?

[Beyond Rational]

Does it work in reverse? Load a few trains up with people we don't want and see if the loophole closes.

[Puggit]

At the very least there should be profiling carried out at St Pancras to check high-risk categories (and being non-PC I'll state that's Africans, Asians and Eastern Europeans in dodgy tracksuits).

[Mr_B]

Is anyone really surprised ? There is very little interest in policing the borders of this country, as an island you would think it quite easy, but no.

[Sonic]

Just read about this also - I'm quite surprised that there isn't some kind of airport-style immigration when you get to London

[bigbubba]

marshalla said:

Absolutely - the place to do the checks is at St. Pancras if they're that bothered.

Edited by marshalla on Thursday 8th December 09:05

It is too late at that point, they would go to a detention center or even bailed to appear at immigration hearings at a later date.

The passport check needs to be done prior to boarding in exactly the same way as if you get a ferry from France.

[marshalla]

bigbubba said:

It is too late at that point, they would go to a detention center or even bailed to appear at immigration hearings at a later date.

The passport check needs to be done prior to boarding in exactly the same way as if you get a ferry from France.

But that only happens because it is permitted by the French.

Inside Schengen there are NO checks when crossing borders, for anyone, of any nationality. It is assumed that they have been checked enough when entering the Schengen zone and this is generally considered a good thing.

A check at Brussells or Lille simply won't work because it either means checking everyone (violating Schengen rules) or calling for volunteers to be checked.

"Would all illegal immigrants and british nationals please form an orderly queue" isn't really going to work.

[EDLT]

marshalla said:

"Would all illegal immigrants and british nationals please form an orderly queue" isn't really going to work.

That is a brilliant idea actaully, the ones that can't queue are clearly immigrants.

[bigbubba]

marshalla said:

"Would all illegal immigrants and british nationals please form an orderly queue" isn't really going to work.

You wouldn't need to do that!

If you don't get checked then you don't get on, simple.

I think it is about time we told Brussels to fk off in more ways than one.

You can not say that the checks of the departure country are sufficient as not everyone wanting to get to the UK will have been through the immigration process. You only have to look at the makeshift camp sights near Calais to realise that.

[Ozzie Osmond]

Le TVR said:

Many times I have used the tunnel early morning and there has been no-one on either border checking passports.

Were you sitting next to Theresa May?

[s1962a]

bigbubba said:

If you don't get checked then you don't get on, simple.

I think it is about time we told Brussels to fk off in more ways than one.

You can not say that the checks of the departure country are sufficient as not everyone wanting to get to the UK will have been through the immigration process. You only have to look at the makeshift camp sights near Calais to realise that.

I somehow think that with our current stance on the EU, help won't be very forthcoming from them. Would you suggest we 'turn off' Eurostar or something similarly drastic?

[bigbubba]

s1962a said:

I somehow think that with our current stance on the EU, help won't be very forthcoming from them. Would you suggest we 'turn off' Eurostar or something similarly drastic?

Not directly but I would insist on passport checks prior to boarding. It isn't asking the earth really is it? If we can get the French to agree to it when quite frankly they would love to get rid of all of the illegals that are waiting to get to the UK then the Belgiques are small fry.

[DWP]

Nothing is needed other than passport checks at both ends of the journey, as at airports. If you are using a train service for travel between countries what else other than the obvious is required. Yet another attempt to save money, by relying on "someone else" to do the job. A set of passport controls at London could be in place by this evening if there was the will. The British authorities should not blame europe for a solution which is in their own hands.