Dover port declares ‘critical incident’ as travellers face six-hour queues

Kent port apologises for delays and blames French border control as summer getaway kicks off

The Port of Dover has declared a “critical incident”, blaming “woefully inadequate” French border control staffing for queues of up to six hours as the busiest summer getaway in years kicks off.

The Kent port apologised to travellers facing long waits to cross the Channel on what was also expected to be an extremely busy day for air, road and rail travel as most schools across England and Wales break up for the holidays.