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EMAIL [email protected] TEL 020 3148 4873Border Force
ramps up
scrutiny
of yachts
Leisure sailors can expect
increasing scrutiny from the
UK Border Force (UKBF) and
other security services. In a new
report, the UKBF said it must
address security gaps around
the British coast, amidst growing
pressure from
criminal gangs and
people-smugglers.
Chief Inspector
of Borders and
Immigration David
Bolt wrote in his
report on Britain’s
security at small
ports and airports: ‘Border Force
recognised that its knowledge of
the threats and risks associated
with general maritime was poor
and needed to improve.’ The
report highlighted that only 392
yachts nationally made customs
declarations in 2014, a tiny
proportion of yachts coming into
and out of the UK each year.
Retired border offi cer Alan
Dunn commented that UKBF was
losing ground: ‘The East Coastis much more open than it was,
much more vulnerable.’ As little
as one per cent of traffi c was
checked in one port where he
worked, due to staff cuts, he said.
A weapons haul reported to be
the largest ever smuggled into
the UK was found
on a motor cruiser
in Kent in August- The boat
was offl oading in
Cuxton Marina on
the Medway when
Police offi cers
found a cargo of
22 automatic assault rifl es, nine
machine pistols and 1,000 rounds
of ammunition.
People-smuggling of migrants
is also attracting criminal gangs.
Wealthier migrants are paying
as much as £10,000 each
to be smuggled into the UK
using yachts and light aircraft,
according to the Daily Telegraph.
Frenchman David Turpin, who
claimed to be a fi sherman, was
arrested in November when his
powerboat broke down. He was
caught near Deal in Kent with 16
lifejackets and no fi shing gear
on board. Five Iranian migrants
were also rescued in February this
year, three miles from Calais with
severe hypothermia in a Force
9 gale, after their small open
dayboat got into diffi culty.
To bolster security, 100
fi eld intelligence offi cers
are working with National
Coastwatch Institution volunteers,
harbourmasters and other
voluntary groups to gather
intelligence on small craft traffi c.
A Home Offi ce spokesperson
said: ‘Border Force vessels
are deployed to intercept
suspicious small craft travelling
to the UK and we work with law
enforcement and other partnersto increase our enforcement
capability in our territorial waters.’
There is some evidence that
more yachts are now being
tracked by both French and
British border agents in the
English Channel. Using small
boats to get into the UK is not yet
a major route, however. A Home
Offi ce statement said: ‘The risk
of people smuggling into the UK
via the general maritime route is
not currently assessed as being
signifi cant. However, we remain
vigilant to changes in methods.’
Project Kraken, a National
Crime Agency, Police and Border
Force initiative to increase coastal
security, is urging vigilance. ‘We
are keen not to scaremonger
but, people who live and work
near the water will quickly spot
something that is out of place,’
a spokesman said.
Suspicious activity can be
reported to Project Kraken by
phone on 101 or 0800 555 111.A Police operation in Cuxton Marina in Kent
caught a gang smuggling weapons into the
UK. The haul included assault rifl es (right)
machine pistols, silencers and ammunitionUK Border Force
cutters monitor
movement around
the coast to prevent
illegal traffi c
PHOTO: ALAMY
PHOTO: ALAMYPHOTO: NATIONAL CRIME AGENCYIf you have a news story to share, contact News Editor Theo Stocker
TEL 020 3148 48734 http://www.yachtingmonthly.com APRIL 2016‘The East Coast is
much more open
than it was, much
more vulnerable’