Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to provide facilities for drivers delayed awaiting customs proceedings in Kent.

Currently traffic is flowing well through the Port of Dover and Eurotunnel. However, should there be significant delays, the Department of Transport has included the provision of adequate and Covid-secure welfare in our plans for the lorry holding sites at Ashford-Sevington and Manston Airfield. Our sites include catering, medical and sanitation facilities for HGV drivers to use. If required, these facilities can be adjusted to respond to different levels of congestion.

The Kent Resilience Forum (which includes Kent County Council, Kent Police and other organisations working in Kent) has a driver welfare plan that will provide reasonable and proportionate distribution of welfare to both passenger and freight traffic during significant congestion. It covers the deployment of food, water, medicine, warmth and sanitation.