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Secure stopovers
Page 16
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In January, the ultra-secure All4Trucks truckstop in Calais opened, giving hauliers the chance to stop without fear of taking on a 'non-paying passenger'. CM looks at both parking and border controls.
Words: Roger Brown
BRITISH HAULIERS have welcomed comments by the French government which appear to rule out a new largescale camp for asylum seekers in Calais.
The French immigration minister, Eric Besson, was quoted as saying another facility like the Sangatte Red Cross accommodation centre, which closed in 2002, is "out of the question': He told French newspaper La Voix Du Nord: "To reopen such a centre would create a powerful invitation to new networks of illegal immigration.
"It would not be a solution to the humanitarian problem. It would be an extra humanitarian problem."
British haulage firms had voiced concerns that a new facility like Sangatte could turn into a magnet for stowaways looking to hide on UK-bound trucks. An estimated 67000 people passed through Sangatte on their way to seek asylum in Britain between it opening in 1999 and closing in 2001 Peter Harding, the owner of Haverfordwest, Dyfed-based company Peter Harding Freight (International), tells CM: "UK truck drivers are often at a disadvantage because people can see the number plates, and know where we are travelling to. -We think the problem of stowaways is as bad as it's always been, and it has got to be good news if the French are ruling out a camp like this."
Terry Sinne tt. director of international operations at TD Williams, based in Ammanford, also in Dyfed, argues: "The re-establishment of proper preEU immigration controls might be a solution to the problem of asylum seekers jumping onto trucks."
Humanitarian question He adds:" I t's possible to be sympathetic to the plight of these people, but there is a danger that any new camp could become a sort of stop-off point."
About two years ago, a welfare centre was built in Calais for asylum seekers, providing food, showers, information and advice, but no beds. However, aid agencies still believe there is a strong humanitarian case for building a shelter with sleeping facilities.
Don Armour, manager of the Freight Transport Association's International Department, says; "The question of whether there should be a refugee camp at Calais has been bounced around from pillar to post by the various mayors of Calais for years.
"The area is a powerful magnet for illegal immigrants, but even after Sangatte was knocked down, this did nothing to stem the flow of arrivals.
"Now the pendulum seems to have swung the other way and the call for a refugee camp has turned into a humanitarian question because these people need more humane facilities."
Armour believes the French authorities need to get a "tighter grip' over the problem of stowaways.
"The issue is much wider than northern France, though, with illegal immigrants a larger problem in places like southern Italy, southern Spain and even the Canary Islands."
Peter Cullum, head of international affairs at the Road Haulage Association, says: "Any new large camp would not be good news — the haulage industry is an easy target. The EU must do more to come up with a solution."
Meanwhile, bosses at a 310-space truckstop in the Transmarck area, near Calais, believe it will help UK-bound hauliers ('Channel hopping no longer a chore with All4Trucks ; CM 26 February).
The facility, run by All4Trucks, offers constant surveillance through video cameras and a team of security guards. Paul Hicks, All4Trucks UK and Ireland sales manager, says: -There aren't any truckstop alternatives in the area, and anything that improves security and the comfort of truck drivers in Calais heading across the Channel is a good thing."
Armour adds: "Not only will truck drivers be able to enjoy a decent break, but it will keep them away from dangerous, unlit and isolated lay-bys.
"We just hope that those of our members who go through Calais will be able to take advantage of this." •
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