HL Deb 12 November 1970 vol 312 cc801-3
LORD BESWICK

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the first Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.

[The Question was as follows:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether airport security committees have been established at international airports in Britain and, if so, what is their composition and terms of reference.]

LORD DENHAM

My Lords, security committees, including representatives of airport management, air lines, the police, Her Majesty's Customs and Immigration Control, have been established at all major international United Kingdom airports. There are no formal terms of reference, but advice on security committees has been given to all airport owners through their associations. Their general objective is to co-ordinate measures to combat acts of violence to civil aviation.

LORD BESWICK

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord for that Answer. However, am I not right in believing that the bodies or the people to whom he refers constitute a number of committees? There is not one overall committee, with overall responsibility for security in these airports. Will the noble Lord look into this question to see whether this would not be a better way of going about it?

LORD DENHAM

My Lords, I am not quite sure that I understand the noble Lord. At each airport there is one committee; is that what he meant?

LORD BESWICK

My Lords, I was given to understand that there was not one committee at each airport but a number of committees. There is, for example, an Airline Operators' Committee, and there are other committees set up by the B.A.A. I am suggesting that one committee would be the right course to adopt. If I am assured that this is so, then I accept it, but I should be glad if the Minister would look into it again.

LORD DENHAM

My Lords the British Airports Authorities' four airports have one committee each. The same applies at Edinburgh and Belfast, which are run by the Department of Trade and Industry, and also at several of the airports run by local authorities. What may be confusing the noble Lord slightly is that two existing committees have been adapted at two of these last airports. At Glasgow the Airline Operators' Committee has been adapted to become the Safety Committee without a change of name, and the same has happened at Birmingham with the Safety Committee there; but there is one committee at each of these places which is responsible.

LORD JANNER

My Lords, can the noble Lord say whether there is any co-operation between these committees, or whether there is an overhead committee consisting of representatives of these committees, with similar committees in other countries? If not, why not?

LORD DENHAM

My Lords, I think probably not, but I will certainly look into this point and let the noble Lord know.

LORD BESWICK

My Lords, can the noble Lord tell me what opportunity there is for workers at airports and, for example, the pilots, to express a view as to the safety of the airports from which they work?

LORD DENHAM

My Lords, the opportunity for them to do that is to express their views to existing members of the committee. It is thought that if workers' representatives were included it might make the committees too big. To be quickly effective the committees must be small; and also, from the point of view of security, it is important that only those who really need to know the security precautions should actually know them.