An influential British think tank has recommended that the government privatise the passport and entry control functions to address shortcomings being blamed for immigration and security issues.The Centre for Policy Studies has written in a report to be published this week that the UK Border Force (UKBF) is understaffed and that its workers are using 'woefully inadequate' IT systems.Some 67,500 ships and aircraft entering Britain each year are not met by border guards, says the think-tank."It is fashionable in some circles to suggest that a certain area of public life is simply 'too important to be left to the market'," the report will say, reports The Telegraph."In light of the woeful failings of the Home Office and the UKBF it is probably fair to say that when it comes to management of the UK's borders it is simply too important to be left to the government."Theresa May, the home secretary, created the UKBF four years ago.Tom Papworth, the report's author, told the Telegraph: "A simple solution is desperately needed. The efficient and effective operation of the UK's borders is a core responsibility for the state, but the Home Office and UKBF have struggled to meet that requirement."The Home Office has proven unable to improve the vital IT infrastructure that a modern border requires and has been guilty of meddling with operational decisions for political ends."The Government should privatise the passport and immigration control functions of UKBF."A contractor would replace ailing IT system with new front-line technology and systems so that UKBF staff could work remotely, so that areas that were not currently covered by UKBF could be covered, and so that backlogs at major transit points could be dealt with swiftly," he said.

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