Sunday 24 April 2011

If the UK joins Schengen

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Ever travelled from France to Germany, from Switzerland to Norway, or from Spain to Italy? Those of you who have, will have noticed that there are no border controls and no waiting at passport control, whether one travels by air, road, rail or sea. This is because these countries and several other countries (to be precise 22 EU countries, plus Norway, Iceland, and Switzerland) have implemented the Schengen Agreement fully, which includes the abolition of passport controls, although one still needs to bring identification when travelling. Contrary to popular myth, states do not need to have ID cards to implement the Schengen Agreement, passports can still be used as ID, and photo-card driving licenses ought to be accepted as ID too.