Having been a long standing debacle for the last Government it is time for this government to act.
Firstly though we need to consider why so many are willing to risk their lives to come here. Most are not from former outposts of our tarnished empire. Latest reports seem to suggest that our lax security for jobs could be an attraction. Is it time to introduce identity cards? Most of Europe has them, no card, no job? There also needs to be a legal way for legitimate claimants of asylum to do so.
Both actions will be greeted with horror by the right wing, but both seem sensible to me. An ID card could have NHS, Nat.Ins. details, DVLA data. There would need to be strict rules to avoid fraud – but they manage in other countries? Identity theft is a major problem so maybe an element of fingerprint or facial recognion is necessary. I am sure there are many other arguments for and against – time we had them!