Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to improve border security technology at ports of entry.

The Immigration White Paper, published in May 2025, sets out a range of measures to transform the border, including using technology to maintain security at ports of entry.

The introduction of a ‘universal permission to travel’ requirement means that we know more about everyone wishing to travel to the UK including Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) and eVisa holders. This will allow for more interventions to take place upstream, with enhanced data and intelligent technologies also being used to target interventions on arrival, as well as using facial comparison technology to deliver consistent identity verification. We are currently reviewing the findings of a contactless eGate pilot and will announce further information on its implementation in due course.