Ms Geraldine McGahey:

We at the ECNI have in the past assisted some cases where there were allegations of racial profiling and discrimination and successfully took cases against the Home Office. It was not as part of the land border but it was at Belfast City Airport and Stena. We do not have any evidence of racial profiling at the Border other than anecdotal evidence but we are concerned about it and have raised the issue with the Home Office. We raised that in the context not just of Article 2 and the electronic travel authorisation but also in terms of the common travel area and the guidance that has been issued. We have received correspondence from the Home Office that as it currently sees it, there is no immigration control on the Border. That is the position it holds but it is something we are continuing to keep under observation, particularly as the regulations relating to the Nationality and Borders Act are being developed. We are very conscious of the concerns of Border communities, particularly ethnic minorities, about that. I think Ms Kilpatrick is our key expert on that.