Border Control And Customs

[lupestripe]

Going through the passport palava on Sunday evening at Manchester Airport, I noticed that the lady who was directing us to the desks was chewing gum. Now, I'm as liberal as they come but is this really a good first impression to be giving to the numerous foreign nationals who are arriving in our country? It just makes us look uncouth and unprofessional in my opinion.

In addition, customs staff - particularly British ones - are tremendously unfriendly. Granted, their job is both serious and monotonous but a smile and a "Good Evening" wouldn't go amiss. It would be more welcoming for both nationals and visitors to our country and it must always be remembered that the vast majority of people who pass through our borders are doing so legitamately and are not breaking any laws. Sometimes there is an element of guilty until proven innocent when you cross international borders.

And whilst I am on the subject of customs - I have never had as much trouble at an airport than I have had at Copenhagen. My bag had to be scanned three times because I was chosen for a "random check". I think this had more to do with me being a male in his mid-20s than anything else but I was carrying two pairs of pink fluffy handcuffs, a pirate flag that could perhaps have been used as a weapon and my transvestite husky plush. Perhaps these aroused suspicion.

Comments

[schnee.livejournal.com]

Sometimes there is an element of guilty until proven innocent when you cross international borders.

Sometimes?

[salith.livejournal.com]

I'm just lucky I missed the increase in that since 9/11.

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

I completely missed it too - I was probably lucky because I would have said something out of turn, against my better judgement. Some of the regulations now are ludicrous and although I accept it is all in the interest of public safety and is necessary, I am wondering whether we are going a little too far with all the surveillance etc.

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

Agree - it is most of the time. However, the difference I find is that when entering the UK I get that sense but not when entering other countries. Leaving other countries (and indeed the UK), there is a definite air of that though.

[schnee.livejournal.com]

*noddles* That's true. I think the fact that the UK isn't in the Schengen zone (it isn't, is it?) is part of the reason for that.

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

No, the UK and Ireland isn't in the Schengen Zone. I think we should be but then that's because I believe that we should either be in the EU or we are not. We are pissing about too much with it in my opinion.

[schnee.livejournal.com]

Certainly true. Not that the same isn't true for everyone else (especially some of the new members that apparently only joined in order to immediately veto everything until they got what they wanted, the same way that small children throw temper tantrums in supermarkets)...

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

I guess it is true - I was surprised with the number of opt out clauses that Denmark have for a variety of EU treaties.

The new members are always going to club together for a multitude of reasons - shared heritage, newbie status and also they were screwed under Communism. It is also natural for new members to veto everything - hopefully common concord can be reached though.

[schnee.livejournal.com]

I certainly hope so - in the long run, I think the EU really needs to be more than a bunch of egoists all just caring about their own gain. But I suppose that'll take time; there'll have to be some sort of overarching "European" culture first so that people feel it's more of a "we're in this together" thing rather than a "us vs. them" thing.

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

I think the EU has common culture of sorts but I think it is very hard to get the Latinate and the Germanic/Nordic cultures to empathise as they are so different. Also, the fact that Europe has, by and large, constantly been at war with each other up until 1945 means that the scars may take a while to heal.

I hope it works but knowing the type of people in the UK, I doubt the UK will ever become a part of it fully. Sadly, in my opinion but there you go.

[schnee.livejournal.com]

Hard to say... we'll see.

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

Hope it works out - I do like the concept of the EU - how it is run though needs reform I feel.

[schnee.livejournal.com]

That certainly.

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

Perhaps you and I could run it. I demand a march on Brussels!!