LONDON (Sputnik) — After a break of almost 17 years, on Wednesday, April 8 the United Kingdom is reintroducing mandatory exit passport checks at airports, ports and railway stations, the Home Office said.
“The data collected will be provided to the Home Office to give us the most comprehensive picture we have ever had of whether those who enter the UK leave when they are supposed to. The information will improve our ability to identify and further tighten the immigration routes and visas that are most vulnerable to abuse,” Home Office said on its website.
Another possible reason to introduce stricter border crossing rules could be the growing number of Britons going abroad to fight for the Islamic State (ISIL) and other extremist groups. According to the UK-based ICSR think tank, about 500 British nationals have travelled to Iraq and Syria, where the ISIL and other militants are fighting government forces.
The new measure has been feared to seriously slow down the movement of passengers.
Exit checks in the United Kingdom were first introduced in 1994 – and cancelled four years later, after it turned out that the Home Office was unable to conduct all the needed procedures without slowing travellers down.
In 2004, the Home Office started carrying out random checks, collecting data such as name, citizenship, birth date and birthplace of the departing passenger, as well as the numbers of his or her travelling document and visa.
