Who's checking the passports?

CROSS-Channel travellers are arriving at Newhaven to find the ferry terminal manned by a solitary passport official and no customs checks.

Now local MP Norman Baker has written to Home Secretary David Blunkett calling for tighter precautions.

Mr Baker raised the matter after a constituent told how he left the Transmanche ferry Sardiania Vera by car to be met by one solitary immigration official and an HM Customs and Excise bay which was unmanned and the lights switched off.

The traveller was stunned that although the ferry vehicle decks were full with lorries and cars no Customs officers were on hand for checks on Tuesday evening last week.

The lone passport officer stood on the quayside inspecting the passports of vehicle occupants in near darkness.

The constituent was anxious that if it was regularly unattended at night Newhaven would become an open door for smugglers and illegal immigrants.

Mr Baker has voiced similar concerns since Newhaven's port traffic was increased by the introduction of two year-round conventional ferries in addition to the seasonal fast ferry.

He said: 'Newhaven is being treated as a low risk port in terms of smuggling.

'If I was a smuggler I wouldn't go through Dover or Folkestone, I would go through Newhaven where the Customs presence is minimal and passport control is sporadic or haphazard at least.'

He added: 'We have serious problems in the South East with the smuggling of alcohol, tobacco and drugs, and major concerns about illegal immigrants. There is also a trade in illegal meat which could have a serious impact on the food chain and farming.'

He called on the government to take action and ensure Newhaven was secure.

'I want to see the return of proper Customs levels in Newhaven and the active discouragement of smugglers so they know that if they come through Newhaven they have a chance of being stopped.'

A Customs and Excise spokesman said the amount of Customs officers at Newhaven fluctuated because they covered a number of South Coast ports and blitzed specific areas when investigations revealed there was a particular problem.

He added: 'For operational reasons we do not give out precise staff numbers for each port.

'If we felt that Newhaven was being targeted by smuggling then there would be back-up from other Customs officers working along the South Coast.'

The Home Office was contacted by the Sussex Express but made no comment at the time of going to press.