Plans to introduce formal passport checks for UK and Irish citizens travelling within the Common Travel Area (CTA) have been shelved by the government, following opposition from the House of Lords.

Immigration minister Phil Woolas said that the measures, which form part of the proposed Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Bill, were needed to prevent non-CTA nationals from exploiting the CTA for the purpose of illegal immigration. Woolas told the House of Commons that the government intends to pursue the measures in order to strengthen the security of borders within the CTA, which also includes Crown dependencies, such as the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. However, the clause outlining the proposals has now been removed from the bill.

Damian Green, the shadow immigration minister, said: "The Conservative part have argued consistently that the Common Travel Area is useful for the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Channel Islands and that the government was wrong in seeking to abolish it."