Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration's report entitled An inspection of Border Force operations at south coast ports, published November 2018, what plans he has to ensure that Border Force will have adequate resources and manpower to meet the increasing operational pressures on UK ports.

Border Force is currently recruiting c.600 Border Force officers during 2018/19 to respond to the new requirements at the UK border as a result of EU Exit. This will provide resilience at key locations – including those on the south coast.

In addition, Border Force has recruited a Readiness Task Force of c.300 to provide operational resilience to the front line and allow existing staff to undertake EU exit related training.

By March 2019, Border Force expects to have increased its workforce by approximately 900 officers, against our March 2018 baseline.The Border Force will always ensure we have the resources and workforce we need to keep the border secure.