United Kingdom officials are to assist with French border checks at the Port of Dover, after the government said motorists had suffered “extraordinary disruption”.
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The Port of Dover authority said that French border control booths at the port were “seriously understaffed” on Friday night, when problems began.
Kent police said Sunday that delays of up to 10 hours were still being experienced on the A20, and that disruptions were expected to continue for the next two days.
“We recognise the extraordinary security pressures that French law enforcement organisations are under at this time and are working closely with them and commercial partners to ensure passengers and hauliers of goods are processed as efficiently as possible on both sides of the channel”.
A police spokesman said officers would be “proactively managing” traffic to get drivers through more quickly.
Holidaymakers are being warned that traffic delays on the south coast of England coust last until Monday evening.
MPs demanded an apology from the French government and urged the UK Border Force to bill their French counterparts after British officials stepped in to help ease the jams.
The firm said it would talk to British and French authorities to ensure there is “no repetition of this disruption”.
French border officials, who are carrying out heightened checks in response to the terror threat in France, screen passengers in Dover before they depart from the UK.
Speaking to the MailOnline who reproduced his remarks, Mr. Bridgen asked why the French felt the need to boost border security with Britain when border checks in the nation were already among the strongest in Europe, saying: “We wouldn’t exactly be considered the weakest link when it came to European security checks”.
It was misery for a lot of drivers stuck in the traffic on the way to Dover this weekend – but one guy had a clever way to beat the queues.
The delays have been caused by a tightening of border controls by the French authorities in the wake of the Nice attack.
Police helicopters and motorbikes provided 11,000 bottles of waters to the stranded motorists, according to The Guardian.
The Conservative MP for Dover and Deal, Charlie Elphicke, has called on the government to apologise to people who queued for hours in the summer heat, describing the situation as “completely unacceptable”.
Volunteer Ravi Singh said motorists were “very, very frustrated and pulling their hair out” because of the delays and the lack of food, water or toilet facilities. Police have advised people to stay in their vehicles when stuck in traffic.
Highways England this morning said that traffic flows on the A2 and A20 into Dover were back to normal, with congestion confined to the port.
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Once in the port motorists faced a further 90 minutes to reach the French border checks.
