There is no indication when the EU will now introduce its biometric Entry/Exit System (EES) after announcing a delay of the planned launch on November 10 earlier this month.
Industry leaders and those in charge of UK preparations remain in the dark, although the EC has said it will take “a phased approach” to introducing the system without giving details.
The EES will replace passport checks at the border, with all non-EU citizens required to register their biometric ID – photo and fingerprints – on first entry.
More: Travellers to Europe unaware of likely EES disruption before delay
Giving evidence to the House of Lords Justice and Home Affairs Committee last week, Eurostar general secretary and chief strategic partnerships officer Gareth Williams said: “We would very much support a phased approach.”
But he added “Do we understand what they mean by a phased approach? No. We would like it to mean phased in terms of volume and like to start so there is less pressure in the summer.”
John Keefe – chief corporate and public affairs officer at the Getlink Group, formerly Eurotunnel – agreed, saying “we would all like answers”.
He told the committee: “We expect the EU won’t go for a big bang across every point of entry. It may reduce the requirement for data capture, possibly [seeking] only facial biometrics or possibly only fingerprints. But we don’t have clarity.”
However, Williams insisted: “We’re not interested in a partial filing [of data]. We’re interested in starting with 5% or 10% of passengers and building up from there.”
Keefe added: “Progressive entry [of the system] seems sensible. Possibly it will start in a small port of entry where we don’t get large volumes of traffic.”
He argued: “The volumes of traffic we carry hourly mean we need the system to be robust. It’s not feasible to introduce a partially tested, unreliable system.
“Testing is the critical part of it. We’re set up for a six-month testing period before going live. We hope there will be a very robust testing process.”
Keefe suggested: “There is plenty of additional tech that could speed up the collection of biometric information and relieve some of the pressure.
“The process could be made a great deal more efficient. [But] development of additional technology has essentially been on hold.”