As part of its authoritarian stance on everything the public do, the UK Government has set its sights on controlling ingress and egress across our borders, via the notorious 53 Questions that travellers will need to supply answers to before being allowed to travel. This whole e-Borders shenanigans is projected to cost the UK Border Agency £1.3bn over the next 10 years. And with the responsibility for collecting the data falling on the transport companies (ferry companies and airlines for example), it it likely that the traveller will have to cough up for the system, at least in part. And of course, there is th issue that this applies to travel from the UK mainland to the Isle of Wight, making passports a requirement for internal travel.
Here's a list of the 53 pieces of information they will demand from us (courtesy of the Daily Mail)
Henry Porter blogs that Will EU law stop the e-Borders scheme? over at The Guardian, and points out that not only will the e-Borders scheme fall foul of European law, but that
In effect, requiring data from passengers will act as an exit visa, because without supplying answers to 53 questions people will not be able to travel. In one nasty data snatch the UKBA has found away of not only breaching the law on privacy enshrined in the Human Rights Act, but also EU treaties that guarantee the right of free movement.
Perhaps it's time the Government paused to take stock of its illiberal policies on data collection which directly and negatively impact on personal freedoms in the UK.