Travel-industry leaders have called on Andy Burnham, mayor of Greater Manchester combined authority, to press European heads of government to apply flexibility to the new EU Entry/Exit System (EES) during the main summer peak. Reporting on 24 July, The Guardian said sector lobbying intensified after day-one school-holiday queues of up to two hours were recorded at Port of Dover juxtaposed controls. EES, fully operational since April, requires non-EU nationals—including Britons—to give fingerprints and facial biometrics on first entry every three years. While Spain and Portugal have occasionally suspended biometric capture during surges, French officials at UK ports say they are constrained by Schengen rules. Burnham is seen as a high-profile ally because Manchester Airport Group (MAG) owns the UK’s busiest northern gateway and fears delays could damage its newly launched Bangkok and Boston corporate routes. ABTA estimates that 2.1 million UK residents will depart for Spain alone over the next fortnight, with Manchester handling 14 % of that traffic. MAG’s contingency plan involves additional staffing and signage, but chiefs warn that delays at juxtaposed French controls in Dover, Folkestone and St Pancras could cascade into missed flights at Manchester and other airports via rail connections. For mobility professionals, the development underscores the need to brief travellers on possible biometric enrolment, suggest longer minimum connection times, and consider remote-work start dates that factor in unpredictable return-journey delays. Businesses operating frequent short-stays inside the 90/180-day Schengen rule should track each assignee’s EES record to avoid overstays that trigger automatic fines. In the longer term, carriers hope that the EU’s Digital Travel Credential—piloting this autumn—will allow UK passport holders to pre-enrol biometrics at home, mirroring Australia’s SmartGate. But until that arrives, corporate mobility policies must treat EES queuing risk as a fixed cost of European travel.
Source: The Guardian
