P&O ferry detained at Dover fails second safety check

Hopes of P&O Ferries sailing from Dover before Easter have been dashed after one of its ships failed a safety inspection for the second time.

Two P&O ferries remain detained after Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) inspectors found safety and crew documentation "deficiencies".

The Pride of Kent, which failed the check again on Wednesday, will remain docked with the Spirit of Britain.

Both ships normally serve the Dover to Calais route.

P&O said it looked forward to welcoming customers again as soon as all mandatory safety tests had been passed.

The firm has faced criticism after sacking 800 staff without notice.

A spokesperson for the MCA said the reinspection of the Pride of Kent on Wednesday uncovered "a number of additional deficiencies including in safety systems and crew documentation".

"We have advised P&O to invite us back once they have addressed the issues. We do not know yet when this will be," the MCA said.

P&O's Dover-Calais routes are currently suspended and the company had earlier said Friday was the earliest that services would resume, but that was on the assumption that the Pride of Kent would pass reinspection.

The MCA has been making its way through inspections of eight P&O Ferries to ensure they are fit to sail.

The Pride of Hull and European Causeway have been inspected and cleared to sail.

A P&O Ferries spokesperson earlier said the Spirit of Britain would "remain berthed in its current port" following inspections by MCA.

"In the past few days both the European Causeway and the Pride of Hull have been deemed safe to sail by the MCA and we continue to work with all relevant authorities to return all our ships to service.

"We take the safety of our passengers and crew very seriously and look forward to all of our ships welcoming tourist passengers and freight customers again as soon as all mandatory safety tests have been passed."

The concern over a lack of ferries comes amid warnings that travel disruption is expected to return at Dover and other ports in Kent as the Easter weekend approaches.

Several factors have caused the delays at Kent ports in the past few weeks.

Bad weather, Easter holidays and P&O Ferries routes being suspended have all led to congestion around Dover. There have also been problems with an IT system for customs checks at the UK's busiest port following Brexit.

Logistics UK called for a "rapid reinstatement of full ferry capacity" before the Easter weekend to help reduce long lorry queues.

The transport industry body raised concerns over drivers being stuck in queues without access to toilets, washing facilities, food and water.

It blamed Operation Brock, the traffic management system intended to keep vehicles moving across the English Channel, and called for the plan, which allows lorries to use one entire side of the M20 into Dover, to be reviewed "urgently".

Ian Uttley, director of the haulage company Stagefreight, told the BBC drivers were being treated "inhumanely".

"We cannot sit drivers on the side of the motorway for 20-plus hours, trying to get out of the country to just do their jobs, with no facilities whatsoever," he told the BBC.

"They're sat there and when they ask where the toilet is they're told it's the embankment."

The Kent Resilience Forum, which manages emergency planning for the county, said it was not possible to provide toilet facilities.

A spokesman said it was due to safety reasons, but added when queues were at a standstill previously, food and water had been provided to drivers.

At the weekend, UK hauliers carrying perishable goods said products were losing quality and value as they were forced to sit in long queues to cross into Europe from Dover.

Though the queues eased on Sunday, the British Meat Processors Association said some of its members had waited for 24 hours or more to cross the Channel.

The Kent Resilience Forum - which is a partnership organisation including Kent Police, Kent County Council and Highways England - has confirmed Operation Brock will remain in place until after the bank holiday weekend.

Highways England has said the traffic management system is kept "under continual review".