For Eurotunnel, Brexit is going to be a matter of technology (smart border) and people

Jacques Gounon, President of Getlink that operated the Eurotunnel, wrote an interesting article yesterday about the views of the company.

Negotiations between the European Union and the United Kingdom agitated commentators on both sides of the Channel.

For Eurotunnel, Brexit will be a matter of technologies and people: it will be an opportunity for us to gain competitiveness and efficiency for our customers. We were the first to let the various political actors know how important this vital link is and the challenge of a smooth border for jobs and economies – not just on the British side.

We set ourselves in motion to integrate the additional controls that will apply to the customs, veterinary and police authorities already present on our terminals. And that these controls are integrated in the customer journey in a “smart border”.

Border control remains the sole responsibility of States. Even if the negotiations in Brussels are crucial, these provisions will be covered by binational agreements. Whether we are in a Schengen / non Schengen configuration as currently, or tomorrow Schengen / third country (UK), the post-Brexit situation is not new for the public services concerned.

In fact, the French government is preparing to put in place, before 29 March 2019, the legal tool enabling it to take the measures that would be necessary in the event of a withdrawal agreement. The enabling bill presented on October 3 by Jean-Yves Le Drian and Nathalie Loiseau allows France to prepare effectively for the consequences of Brexit. In the same vein, Gerald Darmanin announced the creation of 700 additional customs posts to cope with any additional activity at Eurotunnel, ports and airports.

We have an accurate and realistic view of how we will start transformations as soon as the political vision is clarified. We have not waited to increase our hosting capacity and our customer service for two years. We are preparing for all contingencies to ensure continuity of service.

Eurotunnel is preparing with calm, method and determination to the new elements that will intervene in the management of the border between March 2019 and the year 2021 taking into account different scenarios.

Source: LinkeIn/Machine translation