Heathrow chaos due to revamp and 15% cut in staff, independent report finds

Immigration and borders chief inspector also says new ‘e-gates’ crash regularly and cannot read Scandinavian passportsThe introduction of “simply far too much organisational change” at the busiest time of the year combined with a 15% reduction in staff lies behind the recent passport control chaos at Heathrow airport, the independent chief inspector of immigration and borders has concluded. An inspection by John Vine at Heathrow Terminal 3 also reveals a fiasco involving the new cutting-edge “e-gates” which are supposed to offer a self-service check for European passport holders based on electronic face recognition.