The Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Transport, Rachel Maclean, has written to CILT to update its members on the arrangements and requirements in place for drivers entering the EU via France. 

The letter states: "As you will know following the review on 6 January of the requirement for a negative Covid-19 test to cross into France, the French Government have concluded that this requirement remains necessary. 

Discussions are continuing with the French government to determine future arrangements for testing hauliers looking to cross the Channel. Until these discussions conclude, the current arrangement will remain in place and as such we need to consider that it will be a requirement at the border for the foreseeable future.

To avoid unnecessary friction at the border, and the resultant queuing and traffic disruption that this will cause, it is vital that hauliers seeking to cross into France arrive in Kent, and other ports serving France, having already been tested and obtained a negative result.

The Department has established testing at 34 Information and Advice sites across the strategic road network to facilitate this. Hauliers and export depots can also establish their own on-site testing regimes with DHSC by contacting the Department at CV19DfTTaskforce@dft.gov.uk.

Take-up of this offering is increasing, but as things stand the significant majority of hauliers bound for France are still leaving it until they get to Kent to get a Covid test. While the low traffic volumes we are currently seeing mean this is not causing significant issues, as traffic volumes increase over the coming days and weeks, hauliers arriving untested will become an increasing problem.

Negative Covid tests are not the only requirement at the border and to date, although we have seen the French taking a pragmatic approach to enforcement of customs arrangements, we are seeing a significant minority of hauliers being turned back at the border. 

We expect the French to take a more robust approach to enforcement from Monday and so, as well as ensuring negative Covid tests, hauliers must arrive in Kent border ready. We have not seen significant disruption at the border to date but we must not take that as evidence that vigilance is not required.

I would, therefore, appreciate your support in redoubling the call to your members to make
use of the Covid testing at Information and Advice sites or, preferably, pre-departure
testing facilities that businesses can set up themselves with the support of the Department
of Health and Social Care."