MPs are demanding that France assist a British Army veteran who urgently needs permission to walk the length of the Channel Tunnel to return to his mother's home by Christmas. Former paratrooper Karl Bushby, 56, has trekked an incredible 36,000 miles from Patagonia, South America, to his childhood home in Hull, East Yorkshire, since setting off in 1998 after making a bet in a bar.
The determined Yorkshireman is now less than 500 miles from home, having reached the German-Belgian border on his most recent leg in June. Karl and his supporters have written to the French firm Getlink, which operates the Channel Tunnel, seeking access to the roughly 30-mile-long service tunnel that runs between the railway lines 148 feet beneath the seabed of the English Channel.
They hope to pass through the iconic structure by the end of September, but so far there has been no firm response. Walking the tunnel without special dispensation is illegal and punishable with a prison sentence.
MPs are now urging the French to show goodwill and make an exception for the ex-military man who served in the same regiment that helped liberate France during World War II.
Conservative MP Sir David Davis, who served in the Territorial Army's 21 Special Air Service Regiment, described it as absurd that Karl's epic journey could be halted by red tape. He told the Daily Express: "Karl Bushby's 27-year journey across multiple continents is a triumph of human endurance. Having braved the world's most hostile environments to walk 36,000 miles home, it would be an absolute absurdity if this epic feat were derailed at the final hurdle by simple bureaucratic red tape."
Former Royal Air Force Flight Lieutenant Cam Thomas, Liberal Democrat MP for Tewkesbury, said he would write to the French Ambassador in London to encourage France to help Karl. "Speaking as a retired RAF Police Officer, Karl is neither the first nor last Para to make an extraordinary decision in the bar. I salute his tenacity," he said. "In 1944, the British 6th Airborne Division dropped to liberate France. I will write to the French Ambassador to request our allies facilitate this veteran's return to his mum."
In 1994, more than 100 people walked the tunnel led by Olympic decathlon gold medallist Daley Thompson, raising over £1 million for charity. In 2016, two Iranian men were jailed for crossing under the Channel via the route, and a Sudanese man was found inside the structure, later pleading guilty to obstruction but walking free due to time served.
Speaking to the Express about the tunnel crossing, Karl said: "It's been radio silence for a while from the tunnel. A month ago I sent another email chasing, and my father has been involved as well to see if we can get someone's attention." Should Karl be refused permission, he will be forced to swim the 21 miles across the Channel instead. He said: "It would be pretty miserable if it were a no, even if the Russians let me through, despite world tensions."
If Karl had to swim the Channel, it wouldn't be his first plunge. He swam 186 miles across the Caspian Sea in Asia over 31 days last year. While awaiting the decision, he plans to spend the summer in Mexico before taking to the road again in September. Along the way, he has been supported by his father Keith, mother Angela, brother Adrian, and US sponsors Westwood Productions.
Karl took his first step in Patagonia with just $500 in his pocket and all his possessions strapped to a golf cart nicknamed "The Beast." He said: "Stepping onto the road that morning was a mix of things - relief and a bizarreness that we had got to that point. Until then, most of the time it seemed like a silly daydream and then, one day, you're standing on a road that's possibly 36,000 miles long."
His journey started well, but The Beast broke down by the time he reached Peru. He tried pack animals, including a grumpy donkey named "Genghis Khan" and a horse, but had little success. He backpacked to Nicaragua, where a Beast II was made, which is still with him. Karl has crossed around 25 borders, heading through the United States and Canada before crossing the frozen Bering Strait in 2006 to get between Alaska and Russia. In Asia, he faced setbacks including being followed and arrested by Russian secret service agents.
Now 97% along his mammoth walk, Karl admits there isn't much he misses about the UK except for fish and chips. "It's very difficult to find good fish and chips in the world," he laughs. Express.co.uk has contacted Getlink for comment.
