Terror suspects ‘sneak past’ Heathrow staff - new Olympics security worry

Sunday, July 15, 2012
11:40 AM

Workers are failing to properly vet passengers because they are inexperienced, a senior offical alleged.

As a result, individuals on the Home Office watch list are not being referred to counter-terrorism officers.

Border staff have been hastily recruited to shorten queues at Heathrow airport.

A senior UK Border Agency official broke ranks to report the problem.

Speaking from under a veil of anonymity, he claimed Border staff have waved through known three terror suspects, all on the suspect index files.

“The missing of counter-terrorism ‘hits’ is a huge thing, but new recruits are not getting enough time to be taught,” he told the Observer.

“It is vital these people do not get in without being noted and that the information is passed to the police or security services. Once they’re in, you’ve no idea where they might be going.”

A Border Force spokesman denied the claims.

“An independent inspection published last week concluded that all staff were fully aware of the checks they needed to conduct and that all checks were being completed,” he said.

“It also acknowledged the positive addition of hundreds of extra staff deployed to meet demand, the creation of a central control room to manage resources and ongoing recruitment of more border officers.”