Gerald Vernon-Jackson dismisses £9m pledge, saying his council alone has spent £4m preparing the port.

PORTSMOUTH’S newly built £25m, two-acre border control post has been dubbed a ‘white elephant’ by port bosses following an ‘appalling’ government U-turn.

A MOTHBALLED border crossing building – which has never been used – will drain almost £2m from Portsmouth taxpayers while it blights the city’s port as an empty ‘white elephant’.

Portsmouth International Port said it was required by the Government to create the £25 million site which remains unused.

Portsmouth City Council, which operates the Portsmouth International Port, is still footing the bill despite delayed customs checks. / Boris Johnson’s government has left Portsmouth’s local council holding the bag on a nearly £8 million loan it took out to build a giant warehouse to conduct post-Brexit border checks that may now never be used.

Ports are seeking compensation for the facilities, which were meant to carry out the government's new post-Brexit checks but have been put on hold until the end of next year. / Ports across the country are threatening the government with legal action unless compensation is paid to cover the millions of pounds they've spent building new border control posts.