PM urges Edinburgh Airport to reconsider security job move
21.01.10
Prime Minister Gordon Brown has said Edinburgh airport must take security seriously. The call came after it was announced that the airport has axed its dedicated security chief despite the growing threat of terrorism. The responsibility for security operations will instead fall to the terminal manager in charge of day-to-day airport running.
Mr Brown was responding to concerns raised by Liberal Democrat MP John Barrett, who represents Edinburgh West. He questioned the wisdom of the move, but a spokeswoman for the airport said a similar arrangement was in place at Glasgow Airport, and that security and safety were a priority.
Mr Barrett asked the prime minister: ‘Edinburgh Airport, which is very close to [Mr Brown's] constituency, announced this week that they are planning to abolish the post of head of security. Will he contact BAA and the Civil Aviation Authority to find out what's going on?’
Mr Brown replied: ‘The important thing is that BAA and Edinburgh Airport take seriously their responsibility for security and I think we're both agreed exactly on that and every airport in this country will be responding to the demand for these tighter security measures.’
The move to axe a dedicated security head has been criticised by aviation security experts. Norman Shanks, former head of security at BAA, told the Scotsman newspaper: ‘This seems odd. The two jobs of security manager and terminal manager go hand in hand, but usually you would have different heads. There will need to be safeguards to ensure there is no compromise as a result.’
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