(Lab): My
Lords, I am grateful to the Minister for that Answer, but it sounds
rather complacent. For example, Chief Constable Andy Cooke has
warned that police and border officials are struggling to stem the
rise in illegal guns being smuggled into this country. The National
Crime Agency has pointed out that most criminal firearms have not
been used before, which suggests that a “fluid supply” of guns is
crossing the border. We also know the degree of confusion and chaos
that is likely following Brexit. We know that the senior official
responsible for this at the Department for Exiting the EU has just
resigned. Is the Minister really saying that she has confidence,
first, that the system is preventing dangerous and illegal
materials entering this country at the moment and, secondly, that
it will continue to do so after Brexit?
The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Williams of
Trafford) (Con): I am saying that I am confident. A
number of the measures that we have taken over the past few
months underline my comments. On EU exit, the Border Force has
had an additional £91.7 million on top of its gross annual
budget.
I turn to the work we are doing in other states, which is
incredibly important because drugs and firearms, which the noble
Lord raised, are not a UK problem—they are a global problem and
require a global response. We liaise and communicate in a number
of forums to ensure the global response that we intend to
maintain when the UK leaves the European Union. The noble Lord
will also know that my right honourable friend the Home
Secretary, in his meeting with Monsieur Castaner back in January,
boosted and bolstered our response to the juxtaposed controls and
the channel.
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