Millions to hit the roads for Easter getaways as Port of Dover boss says firm ‘back on top’ of backlogs
The Easter getaway has started, with 2.6 million car journeys expected on the nation’s roads today.
Good Friday is likely to be the busiest day for travel during the Easter break, with the number of car journeys higher than the two million expected on Easter Monday and the 2.3 million forecast for Saturday and Sunday.
Some 20,000 cars are expected to travel through the Port of Dover between Thursday and Easter Monday and the port’s chief executive Doug Bannister said Storm Nelson had already presented challenges.
“We suffered a bit of a backlog overnight because of the weather impacting on sailings,” he told Sky News on Friday morning, “but we’ve got back on top of it”.
He said tourist vehicles were taking around two hours to get through the port’s border controls, but this was likely to improve as crowds thinned out from mid-afternoon.
Dover. File pic: PA
Ferry firm Stena Line said bookings on Irish Sea routes are up 26% on Easter weekend 2023.
Travel trade organisation Abta said airports are reporting “strong numbers”, with 175,000 due to leave from Stansted, 105,000 from Luton, 160,000 from Manchester, 79,000 from Birmingham, and 89,000 from Edinburgh between Friday and Monday.
Turkey, Dubai and the Canary Islands are the most popular destinations abroad and trips to Dublin are also in demand.
Manchester Airport managing director Chris Woodroofe said expected passenger numbers there were up 7% on the same time last year.
Glasgow predicts more than 90,000 passengers over the four days while Birmingham Airport said it expects a 27.2% increase in departures compared to last year’s Easter period.
Bristol predicts 30,000 holiday trips on Easter Sunday alone, and Liverpool Airport expects around 60,000 passengers over the four days – around 7% higher than last year.
There were no reports of major delays at airports or on rail, although some rail lines – such as the West Coast Main Line between London Euston and Milton Keynes – are closed for engineering or construction work.
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On the roads, the M5 southbound between Bristol and Taunton, and the M3 between the M25 and the south coast were expected to be the most congested.
Weather-wise, the weekend is likely to be unsettled, with a mix of sunshine and blustery scattered showers on Friday, with a risk of thunderstorms in the southeast, the Met Office said.
Deputy chief meteorologist Dan Harris said: “The weather is expected to gradually improve following the widely unsettled spell of the past few days, with a fairly typical mix of spring-like weather across the UK.
“There will be some sunshine, and it will feel increasingly warm for most as the winds become lighter.
“However, the west and especially southwest is likely to see passing showers too, which could be quite heavy and frequent at times.
“Eastern coastal districts are also likely to feel increasingly cold as an onshore breeze develops, threatening persistent low cloud in some areas too.”
UK
Ireland pledging emergency legislation to send asylum seekers back to UK in wake of Rwanda bill being passed
Ireland is pledging emergency legislation enabling it to send asylum seekers back to the UK.
More than 80% of recent arrivals in the republic came via the land border with Northern Ireland, Irish justice minister Helen McEntee told a parliamentary committee last week.
Rishi Sunak told Sky News it showed the UK’s Rwanda scheme was already working as a deterrent after it finally became law last week.
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Ireland plans to return migrants to UK
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Ireland’s deputy prime minister has said the threat of deportation to Rwanda is causing migrants to head for Ireland instead of the UK.
Micheal Martin said the policy was already affecting Ireland because people are “fearful” of staying in the UK.
The former taoiseach told The Daily Telegraph: “Maybe that’s the impact it was designed to have.”
Protesters in Dublin. Pic: PA
Simon Harris, Ireland’s latest leader, has asked Ms McEntee to “bring proposals to cabinet to amend existing law regarding the designation of safe ‘third countries’ and allowing the return of inadmissible international protection applicants to the UK”, a spokesman said.
Ms McEntee said she will be meeting UK Home Secretary James Cleverly in London on Monday.
“There are many reasons why we have seen an increase in migration towards Ireland,” she told RTE.
“My focus as minister for justice is making sure that we have an effective immigration structure and system.
“That’s why I’m introducing fast processing, that’s why I’ll have emergency legislation at cabinet this week to make sure that we can effectively return people to the UK, and that’s why I’ll be meeting with the home secretary to raise these issues on Monday.”
People are now “worried” about coming to the UK, Rishi Sunak has said.
He told Sky News: “If people come to our country illegally, but know that they won’t be able to stay here, they are much less likely to come, and that’s why the Rwanda scheme is so important.”
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Mr Sunak said the comments from Irish politicians show that “illegal migration is a global challenge”.
“[That] is why you’re seeing multiple countries talk about doing third country partnerships, looking at novel ways to solve this problem, and I believe [they] will follow where the UK has led,” he said.
Shadow minister Wes Streeting said it was unlikely a Labour government would bring people back from Rwanda if some are sent there.
“Once people are settled in Rwanda, they’re settled in Rwanda,” he told Sky News, adding it was doubtful that Labour would “unpick that situation”.
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Regarding illegal migration in general, he said it required “putting the money that’s gone to Rwanda into the National Crime Agency so we can have proper cross-border policing to tackle the criminal gangs, speeding up the processing of decision-making, making sure we’ve got serious returns agreements with other countries”.
He added: “Those are solutions that can work.”
UK
Prince Harry returning to UK for first time since visiting King Charles following his cancer diagnosis
Prince Harry is returning to the UK next month for the first time since his rushed visit to see the King after his cancer diagnosis.
The Duke of Sussex will attend a ceremony on 8 May marking the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games.
The service of thanksgiving at St Paul’s Cathedral is the first major event he has attended in Britain for some time.
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It is not known if any other royals will be in attendance at the service, or if the Duchess of Sussex or the couple’s children will be in the UK.
Harry made a brief trip to the UK in February, spending about 45 minutes with his father, who had just started treatment for cancer.
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The duke is expected to provide a reading at the event, which marks a decade since the inaugural Invictus Games in London in 2014.
The games were founded as a sporting event for injured and sick military personnel and veterans.
Actor Damian Lewis is set to recite the Invictus poem during the service.
Representatives from across the Invictus Games participating nations, including members of the wounded, injured and sick service personnel and veteran community, will also be in attendance.
A man has died following a parachute incident at an industrial estate in County Durham.
Police were called to South West industrial estate in Shotton near Peterlee at 12.30pm on Saturday.
A man in his 40s was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police are appealing for anyone who has dash cam footage of the moments leading up to the fatal incident.
They said they are treating the death as unexpected and inquiries are ongoing.
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Fire and ambulance services also attended, Durham Constabulary said.
Detective Chief Inspector Mel Sutherland, who is leading the investigation, said: “Officers are keen to speak to anyone who was travelling on the A19 at around 12.20pm to 12.30pm who may have mobile phone or dashcam footage which captures the moments leading up to the incident.
“Our thoughts remain with the man’s family at this time.”
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