The United Kingdom Border Agency is due to publish the results next week on its proposals to tighten controls on the Common Travel Area (CTA) between Britain and Ireland.

The consultation was launched in the Autumn ostensibly to seek "views on our proposals to strengthen the Common Travel Area (CTA)". However it is more accurately a reflection of the xenophobia which has driven British government policy in respect of border controls over the past decade.

The consultation posed questions for the private sector about the cost and implications of the proposal to introduce border controls on all air and sea routes between the Republic of Ireland and the UK. It also sought views on: the forms of acceptable documentation for travel by air and sea; and whether those proposed acceptable forms of documentation would be different for travel by air from the Republic of Ireland to Northern Ireland.

The main areas consideration were:

a) Introduction of full immigration controls for non-CTA nationals of countries other than the UK, the Republic of Ireland and the Crown dependencies on all sea and air routes by 2014;

b) New measures to verify the identities of UK, Irish and Crown dependency nationals on the same air and sea routes;

c) Monitoring of all air travel between between the UK and the Republic of Ireland by April 2009 and sea travel by late 2010 using our e-Borders watch list checks;

d) Introduction of Carriers' Liability (CL) on the same routes.

The Border Agency said it did not intend to "introduce fixed immigration controls on the land border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland or on traffic from the Crown dependencies to the UK". However, they indicated that they would consider "increasing ad hoc immigration checks on vehicles in order to target non-CTA nationals on the Northern Ireland side of the land border".

The Celtic League expressed scepticism about the consultation pointing out that the CTA had worked well for over half a century. We stated that the CTA provided long-established political, economic and social benefits to all the countries of the British Isles. We said that the proposed changes flew in the face of attempts to enhance cooperation in these Islands via bodies such as the British-Irish Council.

We also pointed to the tensions caused the last time controls were imposed on the CTA area under the POT Act in the 1970s.

It is unclear what implications (if any) proposed changes may have for people from Ireland or 'the dependencies' (Isle of Man and Channel Islands). However, given the UKs current erratic behaviour (e.g. the unilateral cancellation of the reciprocal health agreement between Mann and the UK) don't hold your breath!

See earlier article on Celtic News at:

(voir le site)

J B Moffatt Director of Information Celtic League 11/01/09

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