Dover

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The first trucks have started leaving a temporary lorry park in Kent after France reopened its border with the UK.

It follows clashes with between frustrated hauliers and police, as drivers have become increasingly impatient to get home for Christmas.

France has lifted its ban on some UK arrivals, but only if they can show proof of a negative Covid test taken less than 72 hours before departure.

"We are very tired. We're staying in cars, we don't have a lot of food, no money," one lorry driver told the BBC.

"We just want to do the test and just go straight home," said another.

A huge backlog of traffic remains. It all adds to the pressure on the authorities to get as many tests done as quickly as possible.

Read more.

Home Secretary Priti Patel has repeated calls urging hauliers to avoid Kent, as Dover and much of the surrounding area remains gridlocked.

Tourists who are not French residents should not be travelling either, she said.

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Lorry drivers are being told they should not attempt to travel directly to the Port of Dover until they've had a negative Covid test.

The Port of Dover said all freight drivers in Kent who need a test must head to Manston to get one - unless they're already queuing on the M20.

Those already on the motorway will be "tested in situ", it added.

Officials said drivers will not be permitted to enter the port unless they've had a test which has come back negative.

"Please have your email or text message certificate issued by the testing facility ready for inspection," they added.

The Liberal Democrats have called on the prime minister to declare a state of emergency in Kent.

According to the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, an emergency can be declared during “an event or situation which threatens serious damage to human welfare in the United Kingdom or in a Part or region.”

The leader of the Liberal Democrats, Ed Davey, warned that human welfare is seriously at risk in Kent and the prime minister must “act now” or “risk things spiralling further out of control.”

Mr Davey said: “Without food and access to sanitation, people are in real trouble. If ministers fail to act now and commit the resources needed now, they risk things spiralling further out of control.

“In the face of the risk to people’s welfare, the prime minister must declare a state of emergency in Kent.”

A Government spokesperson said:“We are working tirelessly to provide support to hauliers awaiting testing at Manston and the M20.

“Free food and water is being provided to all, and there are 12 food trucks at Manston with eight more arriving today.

"More than 200 toilets are in place at Manston, with toilets every kilometre on the M20 between junctions 10a-11.”

falseHome Secretary Priti Patel has repeated calls urging hauliers to avoid Kent, as Dover and much of the surrounding area remains gridlocked.

Tourists who are not French residents should not be travelling either, she said.

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The entrance to the Port of Dover is currently closed - a line of police officers is blocking it.

They told me they will not start allowing vehicles through until “protesters” move from the roundabout at the entrance.

The “protesters” are several dozen drivers standing outside their vans and trucks, some shouting but largely peaceful.

They told me they will not move as they do not want to go to the back of the queue, and cannot move anyway as the road is blocked in both directions.

Central Dover is completely gridlocked.

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A food industry body has warned of a "black Christmas" for fresh food producers, with lorries stuck at border.

Scottish salmon producers usually export 20 trucks of fresh fish every day via Dover, in the run up to Christmas.

Tavish Scott, of the Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation said losing access to the European markets was "really, really difficult".

"We look to export 150 tonnes a day... and that is simply not happening," he said.

"This is the crucial week in terms of the whole year... and nothing is moving."

Food and Drink Federation Scotland (FDFS) chief executive David Thomson said: "It's been an absolutely disastrous few days and it will lead to a black Christmas."

Companies have told the FDFS that the loss of Christmas sales may spell the end of their operation.

“We’ve heard of companies that are saying this is the final straw for them and that they will not be able to deal with the losses,” Mr Thomson said.

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Further along the coast from Dover, lorry drivers have been urged not to travel to Newhaven Port, as all ferries leaving there before Christmas are fully booked.

In an joint statement on behalf of Newhaven Ferry Port, DFDS and the Sussex Resilience Forum, the parties said they were working with the government to try and arrange Covid testing for drivers already booked on sailings before Christmas.

Drivers with bookings, including those at the port, will be kept updated as the work goes on, the statement added.

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A man has been arrested for obstructing a highway in Dover, according to Kent Police.

It comes as truck drivers trying to enter the port scuffled with officers.

Kent Police said it had received reports of "disturbances involving individuals in both Dover and at the DfT-run lorry holding facility at Manston who are hoping to cross the Channel".

"One man has been arrested for obstructing a highway in Dover and remains in custody," it added.

Thousands of drivers have been stuck at the port after France closed its border with the UK on Sunday.

It has since agreed to allow entry to its own citizens and some others, including truck drivers, on the condition that they test negative for Covid-19.

Kent Police said it is working with other agencies to make sure drivers hoping to travel into Europe "adhere to the latest government travel requirements regarding Covid testing".

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Lorry drivers have clashed with police in Dover as they continue to be held up by the French travel ban.

Footage shows a handful of police officers attempting to push back a small crowd of mostly men o on Wednesday morning.

France lifted the travel ban, but requires drivers to have a negative covid test before entry is granted.

Drivers are to receive rapid lateral flow tests, which can give results in about 30 minutes, but it could take some days to clear the backlog.

Those who return a positive result will be checked again and then offered “Covid-secure” hotel accommodation.

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Lorry drivers in Kent have spent a third night sleeping in their vehicles waiting to get access to France.

• France shut the border for 48 hours on Sunday over the UK's new virus variant.
• It reopened it's borders on Tuesday night, but new regulations require all drivers to have had a negative Covid-19 test result.
• It could take "a few days" to clear the backlog of lorry drivers in Manston and parked up around Dover, Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick has said.
• Soldiers have joined NHS Test and Trace staff in Kent to carry out rapid tests on thousands of stranded lorry drivers.
• The Netherlands and Belgium have also relaxed bans on arrivals from the UK, as long as they have a recent negative result.
• But more than 50 other countries are continuing to block travellers from the UK.

There's a lot of frustration here this morning and we’ve been hearing lorry drivers sounding their horns.

What we’ve heard from people above all is there is a lack of information - the waiting, the not knowing what’s going to happen.

This morning a lot of people have been turning up on spec, people from Romania and Bulgaria who are in vans, hoping they might be able to get a test.

I think they will be told they have to go and join the back of the queue on the M20 or potentially if they’re a lorry be allowed on to the site here at Manston Airport, which is being used as a holding facility.

There have also been some scuffles in Dover where lorry drivers are just so frustrated they’ve been gathering near the entrance of the port. They simply want to be allowed to go home.

But if they’re parked up illegally in Dover or in lay-bys or on verges, they are not going to be the number one priority for getting a test.