MPs 'shocked' by border check relaxations

A 'highly-troubling' string of communication failures led to the UK's border checks being relaxed too frequently, MPs said today.

The body charged with protecting Britain's borders came under fire last year when it emerged that vital checks for criminals and terrorists were abandoned over the summer to help prevent congestion for holidaymakers at airports.

Now MPs have said a root-and-branch reform is needed to make the UK Border Agency fit for purpose, following the scandal which cost the head of the agency his job.

The report – which looks into the breach of security last summer at UK ports and airports – said that guidance on relaxing border checks was regularly being “used inappropriately at a local level as a management tool” instead of just being deployed in health and safety emergencies, as intended.

The home affairs select committee, which published the research, said it was “very concerned” and called for an urgent review into communications at the UK Border Agency.

The MPs first launched their investigation after the head of the Border Force, a subdivision of the wider agency, resigned in November at the height of a row over the loosening of security checks during the busy summer holiday period.

Theresa May, home secretary, had sanctioned some relaxation of controls as part of an approved trial programme, but blamed Brodie Clark, the force head, for slackening checks beyond the agreed remit.

The committee said it was “shocked” at the sheer number of times that border staff had invoked the health and safety guidelines, which allowed them to suspend fingerprint checks. This occurred at least 50 times between May and July 2011, seven times between August and October 2011 and almost 100 times at Calais alone.

Keith Vaz, the committee’s chairman, said on Thursday that border checks should be the “final line of defence” against those who were trying to enter the UK illegally.

“The apparent low levels of supervision at the UKBA are highly troubling,” Mr Vaz said. “The overuse of the [health and safety] guidelines and the fact that no one appears to have been aware of what was happening demonstrates a lack of oversight and a failure of communication.”

He added that it was time for a “root and branch reform” of the way in which the Home Office and the UK Border Agency interact. “Only by doing this will we ensure this agency is finally fit for purpose”, Mr Vaz said.

The FDA union, which is representing Mr Clarke in a constructive dismissal claim against the Home Office, said the committee’s criticisms suggested that any responsibility Mr Clark bore should be “held jointly” with former colleagues.

A UK Border Agency spokesman said: "We thank the committee for its report and will respond in due course."