Asked by: Lord Archbishop of Canterbury (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to increase the (1) capacity, and (2) resilience, of the Port of Dover.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Port of Dover has well-established procedures for handling freight/passenger traffic, including in-built resilience contingencies.
Government is supporting the Port of Dover to meet capacity and resilience challenges in many ways including phasing-in the new Border Operating Model; Kent Access Permits; free COVID testing for hauliers at many sites including Sevington and Manston and a concerted, extensive campaign to brief hauliers on new arrangements and legal requirements. The Government is also taking powers to make it a requirement to have a negative test before entering Kent.
Additionally, Port of Dover is relieved (as is Eurotunnel) of the difficult and expensive prospect of providing border checks facilities on-site. This is due to HMG providing fully-funded inland facilities.