Major holiday update for families as airports make change to ease huge queues

KIDS as young as 10 will be allowed to use e-gates this summer in a bid to ease nightmare airport queues.

More than 400,000 extra children are expected to breeze through the quick passport scanners rather than see a border official.

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Ministers have reduced the minimum age from 12 to reduce waiting times set to cause chaos for holidaymakers.

Passenger numbers are set to return to pre-pandemic levels for the first time this summer with more than 34 million arrivals jetting into the UK over the next few months.

Fifteen British air and rail ports will be using 293 e-gates including popular departure points Gatwick, Heathrow and Stansted.

Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick said: “This national rollout will make travelling easier for passengers and strengthens the security of the UK border.

“The UK processes more passengers through eGates than any other country – and today’s announcement ensures we remain at the forefront of technology.”

Miguel Leitmann, CEO of supplier Vision-Box, said: “With more passengers using ePassport Gates in the UK than in any country in the world, we have been delighted to see the passenger usage rise year-on-year over the last 10 years.

“We have worked together with Border Force to facilitate the secure and seamless entry into the UK, reducing queues for more than 70 million passengers per year.”