Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-03-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, on how many occasions a UK port was not manned by Border Force officials in 2015; and if she will make a statement.

James Brokenshire

There was 1 instance where a port with scheduled arrivals was unmanned by Border Force in 2015. In July 2015, Border Force Officers failed to meet a regular charter plane in Cambridge due to a road traffic accident preventing access to the airport. Checks on passengers were completed on the arrival of Border Force Officers.

In exercising their functions, Border Force officers are mandated to carry out full checks on all individuals entering the UK. Border Force has an established intelligence led approach and risk assessments regarding non-scheduled arrivals. This allows Border Force to provide effective border controls throughout the UK.