Fast-track business lanes for Australians at Heathrow.

Fast-track business lanes for Australians at Heathrow.

As reported by The Guardian.

"Up to 75,000 top Australian business people who regularly travel to the UK are to be given new rights to be fast-tracked through British airports, under plans unveiled by David Cameron as he arrived in Australia for the G20 summit."

"Under the scheme, business figures, entrepreneurs and investors who have visited the UK four times within 12 months will be able to apply to use electronic passport-reading gates in future to speed their transit through Heathrow and Gatwick."

I wonder how this will be implemented. Anyone with more information?

Correct me if I'm wrong but the key to the UK's problem is to implement immigration clearance upon exit so you i) Identify who have gone and ii) Catch those who have overstayed.

What about letting AUS citizens with right of Abode to use the samrt gates?

Its a double standard, as we allow UK citizens to use ours, but myself and wife have to line up everytime we wish to re-enter after a short trip to mainland Europe.

Totally agree with London Aussie!

A system like Hong Hong could work. No 2 hour snaking lines there!

It really is quite beyond me why the Home Office is not able to implement this. The volume of domestic travel in the UK compared to international travel is much lower (unlike the US) such that it makes it not unfeasible to reorganise existing infrastructure to facilitate delineation. 

As to the issue of fairness, why did Australia make smart gate available to British passport holders without an equivelent concession from Britain? 

The powers that be in Australia have no negotiating skills whatsoever, or concept thereof, to answer your question TRB!

And I now see the UKBA has extended the Registered Traveller Scheme, but because I am a long term resident, I am not eligible.

Cheers UKBA, why should a person who 'regularly' travels to the UK (defined as more than 4 time in 52 weeks) be eligible to use the EU/UK line and never fill in a landing card, but myself, whom has well and truly proven my legitimate right to live and work here, still has too. I might mention that I exited and entered the UK 9 times in the last year and my answers on the landing card are always the same rhetoric, so my completing them is null.

Angry rant over...... 

Story here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/registered-traveller-scheme-extended