Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact on the a) effectiveness and b) future of the Common Travel Area between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland of airlines insisting that passengers travelling between both countries now require valid passports.

There are no routine immigration controls on Common Travel Area (CTA) journeys, and none whatsoever on the Ireland-Northern Ireland land border. There are no specific travel document requirements for British and Irish citizens on intra CTA journeys. British and Irish citizens on journeys to the UK from Ireland are able to use a variety of documents to confirm their identity and nationality if they are asked by a Border Force Officer; this does not have to be a passport or passport card, but they may use one if they wish.

It is the case that many air and sea carriers require some form of identification in order to use their services. Some carriers regard a passport as the only valid form of identification.