Britain’s rigorous border controls

Sir, I fear Mr James Bovington (letter, September 8) will have a long wait before the UK signs up fully to the Schengen agreement, as the British authorities seem quite incapable of understanding the concept of passport-free travel.

Some months ago I took my car to the Republic of Ireland, the one country with whom UK citizens are supposed to enjoy passport-free travel. However, in view of past experiences I took my passport as a precaution.

Whilst the Irish kept to their side of the arrangements, and I was not checked at all on driving off in Dublin, on my return I found the occupant of every private vehicle disembarking in the UK was subjected to lengthy identity checks.

I was asked to produce my passport and driving licence, then required to fill in a form setting out where I had been, the purpose of my visit, whom I had seen, and where I lived in the UK. The police then checked my car against DVLA records and quizzed me about the history of the car’s registration number (it has a personalised plate).