One of the ferry companies affected by delays has reported that queues at the entrance to the Port of Dover in England have cleared after a weekend of disruption. Over the weekend, coach passengers were required to wait for several hours before entering the port, being processed, and boarding ferries. In a recent tweet, P&O Ferries confirmed that there are no longer any queues at the port entrance and apologized for the wait times experienced during the weekend. The company had previously stated that all coaches had passed through the buffer zone, where advance passenger information was collected, and cleared border control before boarding the next crossing to Calais.
Around 40 coaches were reportedly awaiting immigration processing at the Port of Dover on Sunday night, with an anticipated wait time of four hours. However, logistics company DFDS later tweeted that both the buffer zone and border controls had been cleared by midnight.
The disruption at the port, which led to cancelled trips and long queues, was first reported on Friday when the port declared a critical incident and attributed the delays to “lengthy French border processes and sheer volume.” Despite this, Home Secretary Suella Braverman dismissed suggestions that Brexit could be to blame for the delays. During an appearance on the Sophy Ridge On Sunday program on Sky News, she stated that it would not be fair to view the delays as “an adverse effect of Brexit.” Braverman urged patience from passengers during times of high pressure, noting that ferry companies were working to clear the backlog. She also mentioned that, in general, border operations have been running smoothly. Overnight, additional sailings were arranged to address the situation, and port officials said they had been working tirelessly with ferry operators and border agencies to expedite the processing of coach passengers.
