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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
National
Rajeev Syal Home affairs editor

Soldiers to be trained to check passports amid UK fears of summer travel chaos

Members of the armed forces will be given five days’ training before checking passports at Heathrow (pictured), Gatwick and Dover.
Members of the armed forces will be given five days’ training before checking passports at Heathrow (pictured), Gatwick and Dover. Photograph: Jordan Pettitt/PA Media

Hundreds of soldiers and sailors are to be trained from Monday to cover striking Border Force guards, as ministers prepare for a potential summer of chaos at ports and airports, the Guardian can reveal.

In a move that unions say will diminish security at points of entry to the UK, members of the armed forces will be given five days’ training before checking passports at Heathrow, Gatwick and Dover.

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