A ferry company has urged UK and French authorities to ensure there is no repeat of the huge delays at Dover.

Some people were forced to wait for 15 hours on gridlocked roads to reach the Kent port over the weekend.

Helen Deeble, chief executive of P&O Ferries, said holidaymakers were delayed for "completely unacceptable lengths of time" and insisted the situation "must never be allowed to happen again".

Ms Deeble insisted that P &O Ferries did "everything we could to keep passengers moving" by providing extra sailings and more staff.

"We would nevertheless like to apologise to the passengers whose holidays were affected and assure them that we will be talking to the British and French authorities this week to ensure that there is no repetition of this disruption," she added.

Holidaymakers faced hours on gridlocked roads near Dover this weekend as some spent the night in their cars as they tried in vain to get to the port.

At one stage there were 12-mile tailbacks.

Delays for travellers heading towards the Channel crossing have eased but motorists have been warned to expect some disruption for weeks to come.

The head of the port of Calais said he is "ashamed" about the congestion.

Jean-Marc Puissesseau, president of the Cote d'Opale Chamber of Commerce, which runs the port of Calais, insisted he would complain to the French authorities about the failure to prepare for increased border checks.

Police said the disruption was down to a "vast volume of holiday traffic" coupled with delays caused by heightened security at the border in the wake of terror attacks.

Increased checks were put in place by French authorities at the port but questions have been raised about staffing levels to deal with the huge number of people travelling at this time.

UK Border Force officials have since been drafted in to work with French border police.

Were you caught up in the queues? Comment below or email charlotte.ikonen@london.newsquest.co.uk