[Anonymous]

[VintageKrug]

Worth supporting this, as all IRIS gates are due to be retired after the Olympics.

I can see no reason why this excellent alternative to the highly unionised, militant and unco-operative UK Border Agency should not be maintained to guarantee unhindered passage through our own border for at least a few more years:

http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/29857

According to the privacy section “Your personal details will not be published on the site and the person who created the e-petition can’t see them”

[BeckyBoop]

VintageKrug, Do you have any idea how many signatures would be required for this to actually happen?

[Tete_de_cuvee]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/government-computing-network/2012/apr/11/iris-ukba-egates-eborders-report

A government review found it to be a very expensive system to run as well as set-up apparently, with a poor accuracy rate.

[RichHI1]

This is one of the best threads on the site, urge everyone to sign asap.

Tête_de_cuvée- 17/04/2012 21:37 GMT I have to say thsi is the most ill informed specious misleading rubbish I have seen in many a long year. Damian Green claiming 85% coverage of non EEA flights and aiming for 100%. At present, I am told by colleagues from US and other countries it does not work unless you have an EEA passport. Then we ahev the great announcement the UK has signed up to EU US agreemnt on data… no mention of the completefailure tofollow thorugh on their commitment to FLUx and Expedited International Security.

I have seen some BS in my time but this is a new level of unadultereated political spin. We have UKBA protecting SPanish Practices, the EU trying to cut itself off from the rest of the world and a Govt who really does not care, having higher priorities with domestic concerns.

[VintageKrug]

“”Tête_de_cuvée – 17/04/2012 21:37 GMT

http://www.guardian.co.uk/government-computing-network/2012/apr/11/iris-ukba-egates-eborders-report

A government review found it to be a very expensive system to run as well as set-up apparently, with a poor accuracy rate.””

Well, it seems to work fine for me, and is a usefully free of union control.

It should be noted that the Chairman of the Select Committee is a Labour MP, Keith Vaz and the report appeared in the Guardian Public Sector Technology section, hardly an independent source.

Perhaps Tete’s Gatwick role is closer to this than we might imagine…

[RichHI1]

Be very clear, my criticism and disdain for abominable deceit and misifnormation is not limited to politicians of any one party. The Spin on IRIS and the lack of prgoress on FLux and Global Entry are the responsibility of governments of all persuasions. A plague on all their houses.

[RichHI1]

10 more signatures overnight (UK time). Those of us who want to do something, not just talk, need to sign this and get our colleagues too as well.

Put an end to the lies about IRIS .

[BeckyBoop]

Rich is quite right this petition closes on the 20/05/2012 08:02 and needs 100,000 signatures to be eligible for debate in the House of Commons.

[skyguy79]

How come Amsterdam Schiphol has it 24/7 and we Brits need to fight to have it beyond the Olympics ?!!

[RichHI1]

SkyGuyManchester the answer is because the Dutch Government has honored its obligations on Expedited International travel Security (whereas the UK signed and did nothing). The Dutch Government also takes its obligations to its citizens and delivering public services that work far more seriously than the UK Government. These differences in approach do not seem affected by which party is in power in either country.

Please sign the IRIS E petition.

[azidane]

I have passed through mainly LHR T5 but also T3 on approx 20 occasions in the past year and not once have I had a problem with IRIS, I have never queued more than 2 minutes to enter the booth and I found the sign-up procedure easy and straightforward…… judging by the length of the queues for UK/EU passport control (inc Fast Track) on each occasion it would probably have taken me more than 20 minutes to reach the actual counter.

I find IRIS a godsend and have signed the petition and asked all of my friends and relatives who travel regularly to do so as well.

It must be cheaper to keep IRIS than it is to employ a unionized immigration officer who goes on strike, is grumpy and sometimes unprofessional whilst they should be portraying a much more positive image as they are generally the first point of contact a traveller will have when arriving in the UK.

I implore all political parties to stop trying to score points over one another and actually work together to provide value for money to each and every single tax payer whom you take so much from but give so very little in return

Rant over 😉

[VintageKrug]

To be fair, the UK is introducing e-gates for chipped passports, so it’s not like there isn’t an alternative to IRIS.

I haven’t used the e-gates yet as my passport isn’t chipped, but will do so once my new passport starts in the summer.

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/customs-travel/Enteringtheuk/e-passport-gates/

[Binman62]

Not chipped????? Still have a blue one then!!!

[RichHI1]

The EPASS gates are slower and less reliable in my experience than the IRIS system, they do not allow access to all legal residnts only EEA passport holders, they do not allow children .

It is a second rate solution that needs development and extension whereas the IRIS is proven technology that works. Despite the disingenuous information being circulated in Westminster and the UKBA.

This is not a party issue, all sides are spinning to try to bury IRIS which is the only decent thing about LHR and the UK Border Services.

[Author]

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