Sorry but I don’t believe you.
A quick web search for relevant keywords (‘uk legally registering entry immigration border small boat’) immediately brings up not only the supposedly impossible to find link, but also a guide from the Royal Yachting Association that tells you that you need to register in advance and links directly to the form.
Sorry but I don’t believe you. I just searched your exact terms on my search engine of preference and I still haven’t found said beta website.
Furthermore, and most importantly, if you know exactly what to look for, eventually you will. In the same vein, if I had typed the URL to said website on my browser’s address bar, guess what… I would have found it without even have to search for it! 🤯 Even easier, by your logic.
Yeah, in order to find the site again for the purpose of this post I had to switch search engines as well.
Also doesn't make it easier that a minority of the crew spoke good English. Most are only comfortable in French. I imagine most Brits would struggle if they had to dig up obscure government websites in French that they had no idea even existed.
If one has travelled outside of ones country, surely there is no doubt that one can nod agreeingly to the BS of navigating the legal system of another language, culture, where you don’t follow the news-stream
Of course, I wouldn't expect the UK government to produce information in French. However there is a traditional way of doing things: You fly a yellow flag, and you report to a port of entry upon arrival.
If this is changed without being very publisized, it is really stupid not to at least have a transition period where people can still register their entry into the country after their arrival, until the new rules are well established and the website that is supposed to be serving them is out of beta testing.
If you want to sail from the UK to France, you just raise the appropriate flags, and then you announce your arrival when you get there. Ask in the harbour and they'll let you know where to go. So you wouldn't have to navigate their legal system, you just need to know how to use flags.
That said, I had no problem being in the UK illegally, so no real complaints from my part. It just seems like an attempt at tightening control of the borders that ended up having the exact opposite effect.
While I loved your story and agree with all your points, I should note there’s a big difference between having an immigration website in English and having one in pretty much any other language.
Yeah, but it needs to be announced somehow. We all filled in ETAs, because this is something people have heard about. It would make sense to inform of something like this at the end of the ETA registration. Instead, the fact that I had a travel authorization lead me to believe that I was, in fact, authorized to travel to the UK.
cabbage@piefed.social 1 day ago
It's easier to find the website retroactively when you already have it and you know which vocabulary it uses. Use the wrong word and you only get a million articles about illegal immigration.
Furthermore, we had no way of knowing a website like this now existed, as in the past you would sail in and then register. We had no reason to believe anything had changed on that front and therefore no reason to conduct a whole lot of research into it.
If I wanted to enter illegally I would obviously have saved my £20 and not gotten an ETA, as I ended up not needing it anyway.
leraje@piefed.blahaj.zone 1 day ago
On behalf of the saner members of the UK, sorry about Murray. Sadly, we're overrun with pedants of this nature which is largely why we've become such a backward set of mouth breathers since 2016-ish.
cabbage@piefed.social 1 day ago
All good - the UK is a fascinating mix between the best and the worst. I guess that's almost part of the charm at this point.