Thursday December 30th 2021
After protests from London
Paris lets in British people who are EU residents
Because Brexit rules meet Corona regulations, France initially prohibits all Brits residing in other EU countries from passing through. Eurotunnel closes the English Channel. After protests from London, Paris is suspending the rule over the holidays.
France has suspended the transit ban for British citizens residing in another EU country for the time being. The tightened corona entry rules would be relaxed “for the festive season at the end of the year,” said the Interior Ministry in Paris at the request of the AFP news agency. The border officials had been instructed to exercise “tolerance” towards returning British travelers.
The company Eurotunnel had announced on Wednesday evening that Brits residing in an EU country other than France would no longer be allowed to travel to France by car train under the English Channel. The ferry company P&O Ferries also announced in the online service Twitter that only Britons residing in France are allowed to cross the English Channel.
The Ministry of the Interior in Paris initially said that the restrictions were based on the entry regulations last updated on December 18. It is only “logical” to treat the British like all other third-country nationals and “not to allow them to pass through to another EU country”. Rail travelers with the Eurostar, which offers connections from Great Britain via France to Belgium and the Netherlands, were not affected.
The application of these rules surprised hundreds of Brits who wanted to return to their homes in the EU after the Christmas holidays. “I’m completely confused,” said Professor Fiona Navin-Jones, who has lived in Belgium for 14 years. Her impression is that the corona pandemic is being used as a pretext for something “that is actually a Brexit problem”.
The British Foreign Office asked the French authorities to clarify. These now rowed back. Since leaving the EU, France and Great Britain have crossed over a number of issues. In particular, fisheries and migration policy are causing disputes between neighboring countries.
New hardships on the Brexit anniversary
Since leaving the EU, France and Great Britain have crossed over a number of issues. In particular, fisheries and migration policy are causing disputes between neighboring countries.
Because other rules will change on the anniversary of the Brexit, the British are facing various hardships: In the morning, British associations warned of impending food shortages from the EU to Great Britain. From January 1st, importers have to declare their deliveries from the EU in advance and in full to British customs. Due to difficulties in trade, the government in London initially suspended the regulation after Brexit. There have been strict controls in the other direction for a year when the UK left the EU customs union and the internal market. Since then there have been repeated problems in trade between the EU and the UK.