Lille Loophole

[WestCoast]

Didn't/hasn't Denmark even re-introduced passport checks on some of their borders, contrary to the rules of the Schengen agreement?

They threatened to, but they backed down on permanent controls as per the Schengen Agreement. Passport checks can still be done "sporadically", but I doubt anyone is going to check closely how often they are doing it. The borders on land aren't easily secured on the continent anyway, there's too many rural crossings or even villages and towns which sit near borders. I know of a village on the Belgium-Netherlands border where houses on one side of the street are in one country and the other side of the street in another country.

 

[radamfi]

I know of a village on the Belgium-Netherlands border where houses on one side of the street are in one country and the other side of the street in another country.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baarle-Nassau
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baarle-Hertog

Belgium and the Netherlands have had an open border since 1948, decades before Schengen.

 

[leshuttle]

Have Eurostar added on the extra few minutes in their timetable for Brussels - London trains which now have to stop and drop off Lille gendarmerie (and any illegal travelers) at Calais?

Plus how do they get back to Lille?

 

[W-on-Sea]

Have Eurostar added on the extra few minutes in their timetable for Brussels - London trains which now have to stop and drop off Lille gendarmerie (and any illegal travelers) at Calais?

Well, in my very limited experience of this (one trip from Brussels to London at which the gendarmerie got off at Calais,back in the spring, the week these arrangements were introduced) - the timetable seemed to have an allowance for this (very brief) stop at Calais already - in any case arrival at St Pancras was on time. If that would apply on the very fastest journeys, or more generally, I'm not sure.