英国海关不让游客轻易过关

“UK Border” is the sign that greets passengers arriving at Heathrow. The airport is not on the border. It is in a west London suburb. But the wording carries a message: “You are approaching a barrier. Do not expect an easy Time.”

游客抵达希思罗机场后，首先映入眼帘的是“英国边境”这个标记。该机场并没有位于英国边境，而是位于伦敦西部郊区。但这样的措辞传递一个信息：“你正在接近一道屏障。别指望轻松过关。”

The government’s online visa and immigration page is just as forbidding. This week, below the link to visa applications, were three news stories. The first was about a health surcharge for temporary migrants. The second reported on a London-based Moldovan accountant who was fined for providing unregulated immigration advice. The third said that “nearly 800 foreign criminals are being kicked out of the country”.

英国政府的在线签证和移民页面也同样令人望而生畏。上周，在签证申请链接下面有三条新闻。第一条是关于临时移民的医保附加费。第二条讲的是一名驻伦敦的摩尔多瓦会计师因提供不受监管的移民建议而被罚。第三条称“近800名外国罪犯被踢出国境”。

These are all important issues. But what would it cost, apart from a few buckets of paint and a little computer work, if the government’s information page and the sign at Heathrow — and all Britain’s entry points — said “Welcome to the UK”?

这些问题都很重要。但如果英国政府的信息页面以及希思罗机场（乃至英国所有入境口岸）的标记都写上“欢迎来英国”，除了几桶油漆以及少量电脑工作以外，还需要付出什么代价呢？

The overwhelming majority of those visiting have no intention of committing crimes or using UK hospitals. They want to do business or have a good time.

绝大多数前往英国的游客无意犯罪或利用英国的医院。他们是为了做生意或者玩的开心。

But these visitors have been lumped with immigrants. I do not object to immigrants; I am one. But large numbers of Britons do. The Conservatives went into the election repeating their commitment to reduce annual net migration to tens of thousands and they won a majority.

但这些游客被英国政府与移民归为一类。我并不反对移民；我就是一个移民。但很多英国人反对。英国保守党在竞选期间再度承诺将每年净移民数量降至数万人，结果该党赢得了议会多数席位。

But this government is committed to business too — and tourism is one of the UK’s most important. The industry accounted for 9 per cent of gross domestic product and 10 per cent of employment in 2013, according to figures cited in a Commons committee report in March.

但英国政府还致力于商业，而旅游业是英国最为重要的行业之一。根据下议院一个委员会3月一份报告所援引的数据，旅游业占英国2013年国内生产总值(GDP)的9%，就业的10%。

Almost one-third of UK jobs created over the past three years have been in tourist-related businesses.

在英国过去3年创造的就业中，有近三分之一是在旅游相关企业。

Tourists have a choice of countries to visit, and they are put off by being told they are not welcome. Some in the previous and current Tory administration understand this. Battles over the balance between controlling immigration and attracting tourists have pitted top Conservatives against each other.

游客是可以选择自己要去哪个国家的，如果被告知自己不受欢迎，他们会产生反感。英国前任和现任保守党政府的一些人明白这点。围绕控制移民与吸引游客之间平衡的分歧，致使保守党高层人物互相对立。

For years, the argument was over visas for Chinese visitors. Tourists from China can apply for a Schengen visa, which gives them the right to travel to 26 European countries. They need a separate visa for the UK, which is not party to the Schengen border-free travel agreement.

多年来，他们的辩论以中国游客的签证申请为焦点。中国的游客可以申请申根签证(Schengen)，这种签证赋予他们在26个欧洲国家旅游的权利。他们需要另外申请一个签证才能来英国，英国没有加入取消边境控制的《申根协定》。

It is a hassle. Of Chinese travellers to Europe, 94 per cent apply for a Schengen visa only, Paul Barnes of the UK China Visa Alliance lobbying group told me. The group asked the government to agree to joint UK and Schengen visa applications. In 2012, the Financial Times reported that David Cameron and George Osborne, the chancellor, were frustrated that Theresa May, then — as now — home secretary, had not made progress on this.

这是个麻烦。游说组织——英国对华签证联盟(UK China Visa Alliance)的保罗•巴尔内斯(Paul Barnes)告诉我，在前往欧洲的中国游客中，有94%只申请申根签证。该组织促请英国政府同意英国/申根签证合并申请。2012年，英国《金融时报》报道称，戴维•卡梅伦(David Cameron)和财政大臣乔治•奥斯本(George Osborne)失望地发现，时任（现在仍担任此职）内政大臣特里萨•梅伊(Theresa May)没有在这方面取得进展。

She eventually budged. Chinese tourists can now fill in one form, but they still have to make a special visit to a UK-appointed company to be photographed and fingerprinted.

她最终做出了让步。中国游客现在只需填写一张申请表格，但他们仍需专门拜访一家由英国指定的公司进行拍照和录指纹。

Ms May also proposed visa restrictions for Brazilians, which she put on hold after protests from cabinet members and Robert Halfon, Tory MP and co-chairman of the British-Brazil parliamentary group.

梅伊还曾提议对巴西人实行签证限制，在内阁成员以及保守党议员、英国巴西议会组织联合主席罗伯特•哈尔丰(Robert Halfon)提出抗议后，她搁置了该提议。

In addition, she abandoned a scheme for a £3,000 bond for visitors from India, Nigeria, Pakistan, Kenya, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

此外，她还放弃了对印度、尼日利亚、巴基斯坦、肯尼亚、斯里兰卡和柬埔寨的游客收取3000英镑押金的计划。

All these proposals left a residue of hurt, as have the government’s policies on foreign students at UK universities — like tourism, a sector of great importance to the British economy.

所有这些提议都留下了伤痕，就像英国政府针对在英国大学就读的外国留学生的政策那样。与旅游业一样，教育产业对于英国经济也非常重要。

The government has included foreign students in its immigration target, in spite of representatives from every corner of UK business asking it not to.

英国政府将外国留学生纳入其移民限制目标，尽管英国商界各行各业的代表都请求政府不要这么做。

It also restricted the right of foreign graduates to work for a limited period after their degrees. The all-party parliamentary group on migration, which includes Conservatives, said some students were instead going to university in Australia.

英国政府还限制了外国毕业生在取得学位后工作一段时间的权利。英国议会跨党派移民小组（包括保守党成员）表示，一些学生转而选择申请澳大利亚的大学。

In January, we reported that Mr Osborne had quashed plans by Ms May to clamp down further.

今年1月，本报报道称，奥斯本阻止了梅伊提出的进一步限制计划。

What will the new government’s direction be? John Whittingdale, the new culture secretary whose brief includes tourism, chaired the committee that produced the report explaining the sector’s importance. Both Mr Osborne and Ms May would like to succeed Mr Cameron. The battles are likely to continue.

英国新政府的政策将往何处去？职责范围涵盖旅游业的新任文化大臣约翰•惠廷戴尔(John Whittingdale)曾担任一个委员会的主席，该委员会发表的报告解释了文化产业的重要性。奥斯本和梅伊都希望成为卡梅伦的继任人。角力可能会继续。