When is a control not really a control?

In the past few weeks I've crossed into/out of Germany by train from Brussels, Paris, Warsaw and Vienna. Last night it was Amsterdam and Zurich is up next. That'll make six of Germany's nine land borders by train.

Rail campaigner Jon Worth, who has crossed far more borders by train than I ever will, was in Brussels at the same time last week, so we compared notes.

Our experiences were similar. Sometimes police board the train and check everyone's documents. Sometimes there are ‘random’ checks. Sometimes officers simply stand on the platform.

You could argue it's about deterrence. Fair enough, I guess.

But as Jon frequently points out, there are countless other ways to cross these borders with virtually no checks. So what exactly are they deterring? And at what point do ‘random’ checks become discriminatory?

Jon wrote about this when Germany extended the checks to all its land borders in 2024, questioning both their legality and their effectiveness.

Meanwhile, as my already-delayed train waits at yet another German border station to allow these ‘controls’ to take place, I'm reminded of a familiar compliance mantra:

Just because you can demonstrate that a control is operating, doesn't mean you can demonstrate it's effective.

Unless, that is, your aim is just to look like you’ve got things under control; what I call Compliance Theatre.

Most organisations do this somewhere. And it can serve a purpose. But often it doesn't.