Hauliers’ clamour grows for Dover/Calais solutions

Bosses of the UK’s transport sector trade associations have provided stark evidence to MPs about the impact on hauliers of the worsening migrant situation at the Port of Calais – an issue exacerbated by recent ferry strikes, which have left drivers stranded for days on both sides of the English Channel.

There are now an estimated 5,000 illegal immigrants camping out in Calais – an increase which was “continuing apace”, said John Keefe, director of public affairs at Eurotunnel – which operates and manages the Channel Tunnel – during a July evidence session of the home affairs select committee.

James Hookham, the deputy chief executive of the Freight Transport Association (FTA), told the committee that the ongoing crisis was having a significant impact not only on drivers and vehicles, but on the economy as a whole. “Because of the infiltration into loads by immigrants, whole loads are written off because of the fear of contamination,” he explained.

“This could range from hundreds of pounds for certain types of loads, right up to consignments, say, of pharmaceuticals or other high value products such as that – where the actual value to our members who may be importing the goods could run into millions.”

Richard Burnett, chief executive of the Road Haulage Association (RHA), even estimated that the annual cost: “could be as much £1 billion in terms of write-off to product, because what we are talking about are full loads that are being destroyed.” Committee chair Keith Vaz asked the trade group representatives to respond to the announcement of a new secure lorry parking zone at Calais, which would allow 230 trucks bound for the UK to wait in a designated area protected from migrant access.

The home secretary Theresa May had earlier told the House of Commons that the new zone, set to be introduced in the autumn, would be: “the equivalent of removing a two-and-a-half mile queue from the approaching road. This should transform protection for lorries and their drivers, removing them from the open road where they can become targets for migrants attempting to board their vehicles.” Hookham responded that: “This will help in the port and for traffic destined for the ferries [but] this crisis is not going to be solved by tactical action such as this…

“What my members are looking for is an enduring solution to this and a recognition by the British and, indeed, the French government, that this is a very serious crisis [and] … not something that the haulage industry can be expected to sort out on its own. “Clearly the incidents of large numbers of migrants camping around Calais and, therefore, having the opportunity to attack vehicles in this way, have to be tackled.”

Burnett added: “We’ve got a problem right now. We’ve got drivers that are facing threats and taunts, who are being threatened with bars, with knives. We have had an example of a driver being threatened with a gun. This is unprecedented and it is escalating; and I think to wait until November for something like this to be applied and put in place is simply too late.

“We need action now and we need our drivers to be given a safe passage… The government need to be influencing the French government in order to put more resource on the ground now. We need more police and, if it is not the police, then the military, because this is an unprecedented situation.”

While Burnett took the opportunity to praise the Kent police for their hard work in executing Operation Stack – designed to manage the queues of lorries stranded on the M20 outside Dover during strikes and delays – he told MPs: “In terms of facilities, when you have something of that scale and that size, drivers without toilets or places to wash and rest, in this day and age is not on.”

Later, he added in a statement that Operation Stack was “no longer fit for purpose”, since it was now having to deal at times with almost double the 3,000-HGV capacity it was designed for.

When asked what the road haulage industry was doing to help its drivers tackle the migrant issue ‘from within’, James Hookham said that nearly all FTA members he spoke to adopted the Border Agency’s code of practice on the safe and effective security of vehicles, and that most had received accreditation by the Border Agency to confirm this standard of protection.

“I understand that [the government] is intending to publish the list of accredited hauliers, both to enable buyers of freight haulage, consigners of goods, to make informed decisions – but also I expect as a signal to the insurance industry as well – that these are clearly responsible hauliers.

“I think the majority – not all British hauliers – having lived with this challenge and issue for a very long period of time, have certainly met if not exceeded these basic standards.”

Richard Burnett agreed that hauliers were doing a “very good job” in “unprecedented” circumstances. “Put yourself in the position of a driver driving a vehicle and he is surrounded by 10 or 20 migrants trying to get in, and they are bolt popping, tearing hard cords off, they are taking locks off,” he said.

“They are actually getting in through the roofs of trailers. They are opening powder tankers and getting into powder tankers as well. They are taking great risks in order to undertake that journey.”

He also levelled criticism at a perceived failure to strengthen the French police presence. “We are not seeing an improvement in terms of the numbers of police on the ground to protect our drivers,” he claimed.

Eurotunnel’s John Keefe added: “The police forces that are there are running around all the time trying to prevent crime being committed, trying to look after the safety of the people, the drivers who are on the motorways. “The simple volume of 5,000 migrants in the area, who come and go at will, who are not processed and not managed away from the area, means that this is a circular problem. Until it is dealt with it will continue to go round and round.”

Hauliers speak out

To complement Richard Burnett’s oral evidence before the home affairs select committee, the RHA submitted a dossier containing examples provided by operators of some of the scenarios being faced by drivers at Calais.

“We have had sheets damaged by migrants, and migrants climbing onto the cab of a truck while attempting to hide under the air deflector on top of the cab,” said one operator. “Personally I think it’s only a matter of time before someone is hurt or killed – we have already had two migrant deaths in the last two weeks, and they are becoming increasingly bold and desperate.”

“We have had tarpaulin sheets cut by migrants when caught on trailers, and even some hiding inside plant machinery,” said another. “One of my drivers reported last week seeing French police beating migrants with batons for little or no obvious reason; this is indicative of the atmosphere around Calais becoming increasingly tense and intimidating.”

Other reports include that of a driver being threatened with a “large solid object”, and later, 10 illegal immigrants being found in his trailer. “Our drivers now do not want to haul to the continent,” said the firm.

Another added: “Previously we have had urine and faeces in the trailer which has caused not only health risks, but has meant on one occasion part of the load had to be destroyed.” Yet another haulier reported that knives were found in one of its trailers, and that one truck made it all the way back to the depot with a clandestine still in the back. Intruder alert

To help combat the issue of migrant stowaways in trucks, FTA has recently launched a new portable device which it says can detect migrants’ presence in the cargo area by picking up CO2 emissions within a 40ft range.

While not intended as a replacement for border checks, the system is said to help reduce risks to drivers and keep their vehicles secure.

The detector, which incorporates worldwide tracking, can provide text or email alerts to drivers or transport managers via a roaming SIM. Settings can even be adjusted to prevent false alarms from fruit and vegetable consignments, which also emit CO2.

FTA’s James Hookham commented: “Anything that makes it safer for drivers to do their job is to be welcomed. This sensor removes the need for them to check their own trucks – something that puts them in serious danger in Calais where there are thousands of migrants milling around.”

He added: “FTA has a checklist on its website to advise drivers what action to take when using the French port. We recommend always going through the checks and sensors, even if it takes a bit longer, to avoid hefty fines if migrants are found on board.”