The price of entry
Page 8
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Psst...want to cross the Channel unofficially? Got £350? No problem! This certainly seems to be the case judging by the Observer's experiences this week (see page 4). And while an undercover reporter paid his £35c, to slip into Britain in the back of a truck with little or no Customs inspection, other innocent drivers were doubtless being stopped and inspected.
Maybe he was just lucky. But one thing the story dearly demonstrates is that the new f2,000-a-head fines introduced to deter drivers from carrying stowaways simply aren't working. Yet operators who would never accept a bribe to smuggle human cargo still face ruinous fines if they are found with immigrants on board, unless they can prove they have taken all reasonable steps, and then some, to check for unwanted guests.
Little wonder, then, that a group of drivers recently refused to disembark from a ferry until their vehides were properly checked by immigration officials. Result? Eight illegals detected and fines offr6,c)oo avoided_
CM can only back the RHA's calls for a team of on-board inspectors to be established so trucks could be properly checked by the time a vessel berthed, avoiding any delays. This would not only help to protect innocent operators whose vehicles are targeted without their knowledge; it would heighten the chances of guilty drivers getting caught. And therein lies the am of the matter: it really doesn't matter how high a fine is if you never have to pay it
If the government is serious about keeping illegal immigrants out of Britain it must invest in a workable scheme to make sure it catches them, instead of trying to force hardpressed hauliers to act as unpaid immigration officers.