UK on verge of deal that will make travelling through airport much quicker for British passengers

UK ministers could be on the verge of deal with the EU which could make travelling through the airport much easier for British holidaymakers.

Cast your minds back to life before 11pm on 31 December 2020, before the British government formally withdrew from the European Union. If you're able to remember travelling abroad in the pre-Brexit, pre-pandemic era, then you'll likely recall gliding through electronic gates before enjoying your holiday.

However this is a distant memory for most Brits travelling through countries such as Spain, Italy and France, with all of us having to spend our first moments after disembarking the plane queueing up to get our passports stamped in the slow moving queue.

Adding insult to injury, this is usually accompanied being the butt of the jokes of EU passport holders waiting for their British friends to clear immigration.

A new deal between the UK and the EU could mean saying goodbye to the slow moving passport queue (Getty Stock Images)

Well not anymore, as ministers from Sir Keir Starmer's Labour government are currently negotiating with their EU counterparts to allow Brits visiting the Union access to the e-gates.

The gates are currently reserved for European Union member nations as well as countries belonging to the European Economic Area (Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway) and Swiss nationals.

Can UK citizens use EU passport gates?

Ahead of the UK-EU summit in London taking place tomorrow (19 May) European relations minister Nick Thomas-Symonds revealed that negotiating British access to the faster moving passport queue is currently on the table.

Outlining the plan during an interview on the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme, Thomas-Symonds said of the move: "I am sure we can all agree that would be sensible."

Clarifying the position further during an interview with he continued: "I'm certainly pushing for people to be able to go through far more quickly.

"I think we can all agree that not being stuck in queues and having more time to spend, whether it's on holiday or work trips, having more time to do what you want.

The deal could be announced as part of Monday's UK-EU summit (Getty Stock Images)

"[That] would be a very sensible objective."

However, the minister did urge people not to get their hopes up just yet, as a final deal is yet to be completed.

"Nothing is agreed until everything is agreed," Thomas-Symonds added.

Monday's summit, largely being referred to as the post-Brexit reset deal, will see Prime Minister Keir Starmer secure a deal with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa in London.

The deal is expected to include:

• announcements around UK-EU trade and security
• removing Brexit 'red-tape' on food exports and imports
• access to EU passport e-gates
• a youth mobility scheme with the EU