1 Introduction
1. As a consequence of the terrorist attack on the
World Trade Centre, New York City, and the Pentagon building,
Department of Defence, Washington D.C. on 11 September 2001, and
subsequent attacks such as the bombings on the railway in Madrid
on 11 March 2004, governments around the world have increased
their response to the terrorist threat. Still more recent outrages
closer to home, the fatal bombings in London on 7 July 2005, and
the events of 21 July, have propelled transport security, and
the vulnerability of the UK's transport networks to such attacks,
into the forefront of British public consciousness.
2. These events, their consequences for the security
of the travelling public in the UK and British travellers abroad,
and the response of the Government to the continuing threat, provided
the reason for our invitation to the Secretary of State for Transport
to brief us on what was being done by his Department to protect
the British travelling public from terrorist violence.
3. The Transport Security and Contingencies Directorate
(TRANSEC) of the Department for Transport regulates UK transport
security. TRANSEC's aims are:
"to protect the travelling public, transport
facilities and those employed in the transport industries, primarily
from acts of terrorism, and to retain public confidence in transport
security, whilst not imposing requirements that impact disproportionately
on the travelling public or on the effectiveness and efficiency
of industry operations; and to co-ordinate the DfT's arrangements
for responding to serious disruption of national life, actual
or threatened, however caused."[1]
4. We examined the Secretary of State, and the Director
and a deputy Director of TRANSEC, on 2 November. We are grateful
to them, and to those who submitted written evidence against a
short timescale, for their assistance. We acknowledge the assistance
of Professor Paul Wilkinson, our Specialist Adviser.
5. Transport security is complex and, as we expected,
the relevant issues could not be investigated thoroughly in a
single evidence session. In consequence, we announced on 3 November
a full inquiry into transport security, Travelling without
Fear, with hearings in the New Year.[2]
6. It was our initial
intention to publish the evidence we received at our single hearing
on transport security on 2 November without comment. But the terrorist
threat is a current one, and we wish to highlight to the House,
and the wider public, a number concerns arising from the hearing
without delay. The scope of this report is not exhaustive however,
and represents our initial impressions. We shall be looking further
at these, and related matters, during our main inquiry in early
2006.
1 Ev 1 Back
2
Transport Select Committee, PN 13/2005-06, 3 November 2005 Back
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