Operation Stack: Kent PCC seeks reimbursement for policing

Lorries waiting to cross the Channel park on the M20 under Operation Stack

The government has been urged to cover the costs of Operation Stack, where the M20 is turned into a giant lorry park.

The procedure, used by Kent Police and the Port of Dover for lorries waiting to cross the Channel, has been used four times in the past three weeks.

In a letter to the transport secretary, Kent's Police and Crime Commissioner Ann Barnes said the measure had cost the police force more than £700,000.

A spokesman for the government said it recognised the work done by the police.

Ms Barnes urged Patrick McLoughlin "to provide a permanent and comprehensive solution which provides full and continuing reimbursement for the taxpayers of Kent".

She said Operation Stack was putting "immense pressure" on the community and the police, "drawing dozens of officers away from their policing duties each day".

Earlier this month, thousands of lorries were parked in three rows on both sides of the M20

Ms Barnes added: "Kent taxpayers cannot go on any longer subsidising this national issue at the expense of local policing - especially when the force has already lost a fifth of its funding and a fifth of its staff - with more inevitably to come."

In a statement, a Department for Transport spokesman said: "We recognise the work done by Kent Police to manage the traffic disruption caused by industrial action in Calais and the pressures put on surrounding areas.

"We will continue to work with Kent County Council and the police to minimise traffic impacts on the county's roads."

Earlier this month, thousands of lorries were stuck on the motorway in the worst disruption, caused by strikes at Calais.

Last week transport minister Robert Goodwill told Parliament Kent's roads had become "intolerable" because of the issue.

He said several options were being looked at to deal with delays, partly caused by disruption at Calais.