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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Airport body scanners on way - PM | Airport body scanners on way - PM |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Prime Minister Gordon Brown has given the go-ahead for full body scanners to be introduced at Britain's airports. | Prime Minister Gordon Brown has given the go-ahead for full body scanners to be introduced at Britain's airports. |
| BAA, which runs six UK airports, said it would now install the machines "as soon as is practical" at Heathrow. | |
| Experts have questioned the scanners' effectiveness at detecting the type of bomb allegedly used on Christmas Day in an attempted plane attack over Detroit. | Experts have questioned the scanners' effectiveness at detecting the type of bomb allegedly used on Christmas Day in an attempted plane attack over Detroit. |
| But Mr Brown said it was essential to "go further" than the current technology allowed. | But Mr Brown said it was essential to "go further" than the current technology allowed. |
| Hand luggage checks | Hand luggage checks |
| Speaking on BBC One's Andrew Marr show, the prime minister said the government would do everything in its power to tighten security and prevent a repeat of the US attack. | Speaking on BBC One's Andrew Marr show, the prime minister said the government would do everything in its power to tighten security and prevent a repeat of the US attack. |
| Brown on Yemen threat and airport security | Brown on Yemen threat and airport security |
| Travellers would see the "gradual" introduction of the use of full body scanners and hand luggage checks for traces of explosives, he said. | Travellers would see the "gradual" introduction of the use of full body scanners and hand luggage checks for traces of explosives, he said. |
| He added transit passengers as well as transfer passengers would undergo these checks. | |
| Currently, not everyone has to pass through full body scanners already introduced at some major airports overseas - particularly if they are in transit from another country - due to concerns about cost and time delays. | Currently, not everyone has to pass through full body scanners already introduced at some major airports overseas - particularly if they are in transit from another country - due to concerns about cost and time delays. |
| A spokesman for BAA said: "It is our view that a combination of technology, intelligences and passenger profiling will help build a more robust defence against the unpredictable and changing nature of the terrorist threat to aviation." | A spokesman for BAA said: "It is our view that a combination of technology, intelligences and passenger profiling will help build a more robust defence against the unpredictable and changing nature of the terrorist threat to aviation." |
| He said nothing had been decided yet on exactly which passengers would undergo the full body scans. | He said nothing had been decided yet on exactly which passengers would undergo the full body scans. |
| Electromagnetic waves are beamed onto passengers to create a 3-D image | |
| And he declined to give specific details about timing or comment on extending the use of scanners to other airports, costs or the potential for passenger delays. | And he declined to give specific details about timing or comment on extending the use of scanners to other airports, costs or the potential for passenger delays. |
| 'Strip search' | |
| The government's move has been largely welcomed by the Liberal Democrats. | |
| But home affairs spokesman Chris Huhne did say the scanners could have been rolled out sooner as they had been kept in storage since being trialled. | |
| On Friday, Gordon Brown announced he had ordered a review of existing security measures, and advisers are expected to report within days. | On Friday, Gordon Brown announced he had ordered a review of existing security measures, and advisers are expected to report within days. |
| The £80,000 full body scanners, which produce "naked" images of passengers, remove the need for "pat down" searches. | |
| They work by beaming electromagnetic waves on to passengers while they stand in a booth. A virtual three-dimensional image is then created from the reflected energy. | |
| Some have voiced concerns about privacy, with campaigners saying they are tantamount to a "strip search". | |
| The machines are currently being trialled at Manchester airport following tests at Heathrow airport from 2004 to 2008. | The machines are currently being trialled at Manchester airport following tests at Heathrow airport from 2004 to 2008. |
| They are also being rolled out across the US, with 40 machines used at 19 airports. | They are also being rolled out across the US, with 40 machines used at 19 airports. |