§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he routinely takes to monitor immigration through south coast ports; and how that has increased since 11 September. [18393]
§ Angela EaglePassengers arriving at south coast ports are routinely examined by an immigration officer in order to establish their nationality and identity and whether they require leave to enter. The personal details of all such passengers are checked against the Immigration Service Warnings Index, a computer system, which provides information to immigration staff for the purpose of immigration control, national security and the prevention of crime. All Immigration Service staff at points of entry on the south coast have access to this system.
The Immigration Service also routinely conducts vehicle searches in order to detect people attempting to enter the United Kingdom clandestinely. Advanced scanning equipment including x-ray machines and carbon dioxide detectors have been introduced in order to assist in the detection of such people.
The Immigration Service is developing closer liaison with the French authorities and carriers in order to control the flow of passengers arriving in the United Kingdom without any identifying documentation. A United Kingdom liaison officer from the Immigration Service now operates alongside French colleagues in Paris and juxtaposed immigration controls were established at Waterloo and Paris this year, which enables passengers to be cleared before they pass through the channel tunnel. It has also had significant success in taking forward, in conjunction with the police, the prosecution of people suspected of having attempted to facilitate the illegal entry of inadequately documented foreign nationals.
Since 11 September all ports throughout the country have been put on a heightened state of alert. The Immigration Service has issued instructions to all operational officers advising them of the procedures to be followed, including closer liaison with the Security Services in the event of known or suspected terrorists being encountered.
§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what procedure is to be adopted by those seeking to enter the UK via ports without immigration controls or personnel; and how that has changed since 11 September. [18395]
§ Angela EagleImmigration Officers routinely attend ports which are normally unstaffed, in order to examine passengers arriving on services originating from outside the European Economic Area. Other services are closely monitored and carriers are required to fax passenger manifests to a designated local immigration office. The personal details of the passengers are checked against the Immigration Service Warnings Index. The Warnings Index computer system is the primary tool for providing information to staff operating the immigration entry control; it also provides information on matters of national security and the prevention of crime. All Immigration Service staff at points of entry have access to this system. If the passenger is a national of a country from outside the European Economic Area, and the immigration officer is336W satisfied that he qualifies for entry under the Immigration Rules, he will grant him leave to enter, normally following a telephone interview.
In order to preserve the integrity of the control immigration officers also make regular unannounced visits to unstaffed ports in order to ensure that the correct procedures are being followed. The Immigration Service maintains close links with Customs and Excise and the police, sharing intelligence where appropriate in relation to arriving passengers.
All ports around the country have been put on a heightened state of alert since 11 September and the Immigration Service has issued instructions to all officers advising them of the procedures to be followed, including close liaison with the security services, in the event of known or suspected terrorists being encountered.
Mr. AndrewTurner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff are engaged in monitoring immigration and immigration control through each south coast port; and how that has increased since 11 September. [18394]
§ Angela EagleImmigration staff are deployed on a permanent 24 hour basis at all designated points of entry on the south coast. As of 26 November, provisional figures indicate that 367 immigration officers and 106 assistant immigration officers are currently based at Dover, covering a range of functions including interviewing arriving passengers, searching freight vehicles and working at Coquelles, the point of entry for the Channel Tunnel in France. As of 26 November 2001, the staffing figures for the other south coast ports are given in the table.
Port Immigration Officers Assistant Immigration Officers Dover 367 106 Newhaven 11 — Portsmouth 38 6 Southampton 5 — Poole 15 5 Plymouth 11 2 Total 447 119 I regret that the specific information requested on the increases in staffing levels since 11 September is not currently available. There is however an on-going national recruitment campaign for the Immigration Service. Between April 2000 and October 2001 staffing levels at Poole, Plymouth, Portsmouth and Southampton increased by 113 per cent., 47 per cent., 43 per cent. and 45 per cent. respectively. Additional resources will be targeted for the south-east region over the next 12 months.
§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons are known to have entered the UK via ports without immigration personnel,(a) in the last 12 months and (b) since 11 September. [18396]
§ Angela EagleI regret that the information requested is not currently available.