National News The Brexit Thread 🇬🇧🇪🇺

[QR]

Maybe the French are having the same issues recruiting suitably vetted staff to do the job after they left the EU?

Or maybe the French have exactly the same number of staff but the checks take longer because the uk decide to end its freedom of movement

 

[Oslernorth]

OK genuine question.

If are passengers are stuck in 5 hour border check queues before they check in for their ferries why it this being laid at the door of French customs officials?

Do we have French border staff operating on our soil? or

Is this the biggest bullshit excuse of all time? or

Is this one of the worst pieces of journalism of all time?

(or am I missing something bleeding obvious )

BBC News - Port of Dover declares critical incident over queues

Dover traffic: Eurotunnel rejects French explanation for Dover delays

Eurotunnel rejects French explanation after Port declares "critical incident".

www.bbc.co.uk

I’m not sure if this is still the case post Brexit, but pre Brexit the UK border force operated in Calais and French border force operated in Dover on the Eurostar.

 

[DevilsAvocado]

Sounds like a lack of communication - things are improved on one side to improve flow then get "pinched" on the other.

Maybe the French are having the same issues recruiting suitably vetted staff to do the job after they left the EU?

Or the Cheese Eating Surrender Monkeys are playing silly buggers.

You ever tried to explain what a Cheese eating surrender monkey means to a French person ?

I have, quite a few times, the first reaction is normally, "Ah bon ?" followed by a blank look until i break
it down, they all like the monkey bit, not so keen on the surrender part but i placate them by saying if
it wasnt for the channel* we would have been toast as well.

 

[Essexyellows]

You ever tried to explain what a Cheese eating surrender monkey means to a French person ?

I have, quite a few times, the first reaction is normally, "Ah bon ?" followed by a blank look until i break
it down, they all like the monkey bit, not so keen on the surrender part but i placate them by saying if
it wasnt for the channel* we would have been toast as well.

Only ever explained it to a group of very drunk french folk in Castres, they took it in the spirit it is intended a light-hearted joke, the same as their "Roast Beefs!".

As it only originated in the mid-'90s, tips hat to Willie in the Simpsons, it's a very out-on-a-limb jest.

 

[DevilsAvocado]

Only ever explained it to a group of very drunk french folk in Castres, they took it in the spirit it is intended a light-hearted joke, the same as their "Roast Beefs!".

As it only originated in the mid-'90s, tips hat to Willie in the Simpsons, it's a very out-on-a-limb jest.

Not the same as Roast Beef at all, the equivalent to that would be Froggy, very hard to get triggered by that, its just silly.
References to WW2 and French capitulation still sits heavy with some and its use in this way is a bit of a sly dig, it might
be funny for us but for people who would rather forget what happened, not so much.

 

[Essexyellows]

Not the same as Roast Beef at all, the equivalent to that would be Froggy, very hard to get triggered by that, its just silly.
References to WW2 and French capitulation still sits heavy with some and its use in this way is a bit of a sly dig, it might
be funny for us but for people who would rather forget what happened, not so much.

Indeed, but making a joke of any sort you play to your audience.

 

[Big Ron]

Indeed, but making a joke of any sort you play to your audience.

We always know when you are making a joke - you put any number of smiley, laughing, winking, shrugging and crying emojis to highlight the fact. Which is just as well, as we wouldn't know otherwise.

 

[Essexyellows]

We always know when you are making a joke - you put any number of smiley, laughing, winking, shrugging and crying emojis to highlight the fact. Which is just as well, as we wouldn't know otherwise.

I like them.

I`m on commission you know....

 

[QR]

I like them.

I`m on commission you know....

Hope you've got a good lawyer.

 

[LowerSouth]

OK genuine question.

If are passengers are stuck in 5 hour border check queues before they check in for their ferries why it this being laid at the door of French customs officials?

Do we have French border staff operating on our soil? or

Is this the biggest bullshit excuse of all time? or

Is this one of the worst pieces of journalism of all time?

(or am I missing something bleeding obvious )

BBC News - Port of Dover declares critical incident over queues

Dover traffic: Eurotunnel rejects French explanation for Dover delays

Eurotunnel rejects French explanation after Port declares "critical incident".

www.bbc.co.uk

By now,you probably realise that the French Border control is based at Dover.
So:
No
No
No
BUT it shouldn’t have got to this

 

[QR]

So maybe it's not a problem with the French.

More now from travel expert Simon Calder, who says the days of just waving your passport from the car window and driving through Dover are over.

Although all the border check stations are being fully staffed this morning, Brexit has meant French officials have to conduct more rigorous checks on passengers travelling from the UK.

"In the olden days when I’ve turned up in my car, I’d just wave a passport... and I’d be through," says Calder.

"They cannot do that anymore because this is an external frontier of the European Union."

He says every official has to not only check each passport and stamp it, but also make sure you haven’t stayed more than 90 days in 180, whether you’ve got a return ticket, accommodation and money.

Calder's been timing checks at the border, he adds.

"A couple of people in the car [takes] about 45 seconds. If you’ve got a family of four, that’s a minute-and-a-half... and therefore, queues are just going to build up.”

https://twitter.com/x/status/1550742053826568192

 

[LowerSouth]

Seems the only way to get rid of the delays at Dover is really very simple- just move the French border controls to Calais

 

[Oxymoron]

There's a time for stamping passports et al and there's a time for pragmatism....

 

[QR]

There's a time for stamping passports et al and there's a time for pragmatism....

They don't stamp for the fun of it. They stamp to show it's been checked and the holder has not stayed in the EU for than 90 day out of the past 180. It's called controlling your border.

People voted to have their freedom of movement across the EU seriously curtailed and then complain when it happens.

Seeing as this is a Tory government actually delivering on what it promised* I don't know what all the fuss is about.

*Here a reminder.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1550888738871459840

 

[Marked Ox]

I'm just amazed one of Truss or Sunak haven't promised to beam people to wherever, like Star Trek, to try to win the leadership contest.

 

[Essexyellows]

Not traveled as much as pre-Covid but every time we have passport control(s) at both ends of the journey have been swift & efficient.

The only hold-ups have been caused by folk putting their passports in the wrong way at the e-gates.

The channel crossing issue seems to be a lack of resources to cope with the (expected) volume of traffic.

 

[Coffin dodger]

The sooner we all get micro-chipped the better.

 

[werthersoriginal]

The sooner we all get micro-chipped the better.

Maybe the next round of vaxes will do that? Should speed things up

 

[Oslernorth]

Not traveled as much as pre-Covid but every time we have passport control(s) at both ends of the journey have been swift & efficient.

The only hold-ups have been caused by folk putting their passports in the wrong way at the e-gates.

The channel crossing issue seems to be a lack of resources to cope with the (expected) volume of traffic.

The problem is even if the the passport process only takes an extra 30 seconds per passenger, that’s still going to take an extra hour and a half to process a plane of 200 passengers. I know with every extra member of staff you can half that time, but buildings are only so big and you’ll soon hit capacity.
A large airport will land around 600 planes a day.

 

[Sheik djibouti]

Yeah but, no but.... we've had enough of experts....

Watch a Brexiteer get schooled on why the French aren't to blame for Dover queues

Ah, we remember when Brexiteer Michael Gove made the argument that “people in this country have had enough of experts” during the 2016 EU referendum, but we certainly haven’t when they can shut down inaccuracies made about the impact of our decision to leave the block six years ago.On Monday’s...

www.indy100.com

There's also a good link in there to good old John Redwood proving that he's about as intelligent as...well....John Redwood when mocking Remainers and the idea of queues at Dover in the HOC back in 2017.

East Kent really is the sunlit uplands of Brexit[emoji1787]