Bid to halt illegal migrants fails: Damning verdict of EU border controls
A HOME Office drive to curb illegal migrants trying to get to Britain from Calais has failed, a scathing report said last night.
Lax border controls across southern and eastern Europe are frustrating efforts to stop border cheats heading for the UK, MPs said.
They said the “hard work” of UK Border Agency staff to improve security at Calais was “not stemming the tide of people attempting to come”.
The damning verdict was delivered in a report from the Commons Home Affairs Committee.
Free movement rules within the EU had wrongly assumed external borders would be secure, it said.
But it added: “They are not, so free movement means free movement for illegal migrants within the EU.”
By the time they reach Calais, it is too late
The MPs questioned whether the Government’s pledge to introduce exit checks at all Britain’s ports and airports was practical. And their report said checks to root out criminal migrants were inadequate at many ports, with nearly a third of migrants arriving not having their records properly checked.
Committee chairman Keith Vaz said: “The crisis in Calais is a direct result of the soft EU external border in the Southern Mediterranean and the Greek–Turkish border.
“By the time they reach Calais, it is too late.”
A Home Office spokesman defended the Government’s efforts and said: “The UK is continuing work with other EU countries to tackle the the causes of illegal immigration.”
