Feb 082010
By Charlotte King
In the wake of the attempted aircraft bombing on Christmas day, compulsory full-body scans have been introduced by the UK government as part of pre-flight security checks on passengers travelling from Heathrow and Manchester airports.
According to the Home Office, the current terrorism threat level in the UK is ‘severe’, the second highest possible. This means a terrorist attack is considered highly likely.
The new full-body scanners could help detect and deter terrorists, but not everyone will be scanned, and the selection process is not well defined. Lord Adonis, Transport Secretary, said: “If a passenger is selected for scanning and declines, they will not be permitted to fly,” and the Department of Transport’s interim code states that passengers cannot be selected by profiling - based on gender, age, race or ethnic origin.
Manchester airport has been trialling full body scanning using x-ray technology since October 2009. So far, passengers have been scanned on a voluntary basis, but now it will be compulsory.
The scanners are based on backscatter technology, which involves firing low level x-rays at the body and then analysing the response as the radiation is reflected back. The resulting pattern varies depending on the materials the x-rays hit, uncovering hidden items. Each scanner costs around £80,000.
Although there are concerns about the safety of exposing passengers to x-ray radiation, an assessment by the Health Protection Agency showed that the total dose received in one scan is less than a single hour’s background radiation – which occurs naturally.
The backscatter technology differs from traditional x-ray machines, such as those used in hospitals, where x-rays fully penetrate the body and can cause harm with repeated exposure.
BAA Heathrow said: “the technology will better enable the detection of concealed items while allowing passengers to remain fully clothed.”
However, many are concerned about privacy, including Big Brother Watch (BBW) - a campaigning group which aims to protect civil liberties and personal freedoms. Director of BBW Alex Deane said: “what kind of a free society does the government think it is ‘protecting’, when it invades our privacy like this?”.
Airport staff are allowed to scan anyone, including children, although the images are immediately deleted after they have been examined. In addition, the staff who select scanning subjects do not view the images themselves. The whole process takes only around seven seconds, but the images do not leave much to the imagination.
Ian Hutcheson, BAA Security Director said: “The security and safety of our passengers and staff is BAA’s first priority. The introduction of full-body scanners and other technology is one significant step towards a more robust defence against the changing and unpredictable threat posed by terrorists”.
BAA plans to install scanners in each of the five terminals at Heathrow. There are also plans to install scanners at Gatwick and other UK airports.
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Good lord that's an unfortunate acronym
Is there a way for the scans to filter out bodily detail? I don't think this level of scrutiny is necessary. Instead of making the discourse about the prevention of extant terrorism, it should be about there being no terrorism at all, and this is achieved by not demonstrating any kind of reaction, or 'fight'. This mental leap is well beyond our current ruling powers, and furthermore would not suit them. The need for an enemy is a well-established fact. To reverse our foreign policy, relax our free speech laws and provide security that matches the realistic threat-level is but a pipe-dream, so martial law it is.