Brits travelling to the Canary Islands have encountered long waits during passport checks, prompting concerns and complaints from UK holidaymakers who find themselves enduring extensive queues. While citizens of EU countries navigate the process seamlessly, Brits, now designated as nationals of third countries post-Brexit, are required to undergo meticulous passport controls before gaining entry into any EU Member State, including Spain.
Despite the acceptance of these procedures by British travellers, there are continued concerns regarding the prolonged waiting periods. These travel ordeals have persisted since the UK’s formal departure from the EU, impacting hundreds of thousands of British travellers.
Travel industry leaders have expressed their alarm, citing prolonged queues at Canarian airports spanning several months, with the bottleneck in controls for non-EU passengers being described as "nonsense".
Spain, a perennially favoured destination for Britons, witnesses a substantial influx of UK tourists annually, and travellers are faced with similar challenges upon arrival at various popular entry points across the country.
The growing discontent among travellers from the UK is underlined by their increasing remorse over the decision to exit the EU. Despite Rishi Sunak's claims that Brexit has meant numerous benefits for the UK, a significant portion of the population disagrees.
Over half have expressed a hypothetical preference to remain in the EU, according to recent YouGov survey results. Notably, approximately 55% of respondents indicated they would vote to remain, while only 31% favoured staying out of the EU if another referendum were held.
Furthermore, data from the survey indicates a heightened inclination among Britons to remain in the EU. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) highlights the adverse economic repercussions of leaving the EU, with a 0.4% decline in GDP growth since 2019.
Amid ongoing challenges faced by British travellers entering the EU, the imminent implementation of the Entry/Exit System offers a glimmer of change.
With the Entry/Exit System's activation, travellers from the UK and other nations entering the EU can anticipate streamlined processes, negating the need for prolonged waiting periods, as manual passport stamping will become obsolete, until then, the situation will only get worse as tourist numbers continue to increase.
