Ground-To-Air Missiles At 2012 Olympics?

[Dino]

I first heard this about an hour and think it's a stupid idea. So that's my cards on the table.

Defence Secretary Philip Hammond has told MPs that ground-to-air missiles will be deployed to protect the 2012 Olympic Games in London if deemed operationally necessary.

He was asked to confirm this by the former defence secretary Liam Fox.

It was Mr Hammond's first appearance at Defence Questions since taking over from Mr Fox.

The comments follow reports of concern in the United States about security plans for the Games.

The Guardian claimed the US was furious about security plans and wanted to send up to 1,000 of its own people, including 500 FBI agents but the Home Office says it has "full confidence" in the plans.

'All necessary measures'
Mr Hammond was asked by his predecessor to confirm whether there would be a "full range of multilayered defence and deterrents" in place for the 2012 Games including surface-to-air missiles.

He replied: "I can assure him that all necessary measures to ensure the security and safety of the London Olympic Games will be taken including - if the advice of the military is that it is required - appropriate ground-to-air defences."

The BBC's Political Correspondent Robin Brant said Mr Fox would almost certainly have been aware of the security plans for the event - so the exchange may have been designed to show how seriously the UK's contingency planning was being taken.

The deployment of overseas security officers at the Olympics has become standard procedure in recent years but final responsibility for security rests with the host government.

National Olympic security co-ordinator Chris Allison said there would be a small amount of "foreign security liaison officers" in London to act as a link between their national teams and UK police.

But he insisted their numbers would not be on the scale reported

"The Games will be delivered by the British police service, working with Games organisers Locog," he told the BBC. "We will have support from other colleagues up and down the country but it is the British police service that will be doing it."

The US was providing "great support", Mr Allison added, and their officials did not "recognise" the concerns expressed in the newspaper.

The Guardian article says the London riots, the arrest of a security guard at the Olympic site and arrests before the visit of the Pope last year have raised US anxieties while the restriction of the scope of anti-terrorism stop-and-search powers was also claimed to have caused concerns.

'Safe and secure'
In response, the Home Office said security planning was "on track" and funding had been protected.

"The government is committed to delivering a safe and secure Games that London, the UK and the world can enjoy," a spokesman said.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC), which undertakes detailed inspections of security preparations, had "full confidence" in the UK's plans, he added.

Responding to claims in the article, the games organisers Locog said precise numbers of security officers are only now being finalised because the venues themselves have only just been completed.

The US Embassy has declined to comment.

Earlier this year Mr Allison said 12,000 officers may be needed nationally to police the event and another 10,000-15,000 security officials could also be deployed by private security firm G4S.

The BBC's security correspondent Gordon Corera said: "The US is understood to be taking a close interest in the plans and is intending to send over hundreds of personnel to protect its athletes."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-15724639

So... this is mainly being done to appease the Americans? And how much is this going to cost? Are there similar plans to deploy napalm to get rid of an anthill? Or is this double bluff and there won't actually be any missiles primed and ready at the Olympics to psyche out hijackers?
I can accept marksmen in the stadium. Plain clothes officers amongst the spectators. But ground-to-air missiles? Really? Plus with everything getting cut these days, will there be enough staff to man the security?

[SiHart]

That seems a bit over the top to me. Is the threat really that bad? Really?

[Dino]

Well Channel 4 put my mind at rest by saying this policy has been in place since the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
So... why have they let the cat out of the bag now? And just... what?
I admit, I'm not all that interested in the Olympics, but if I went along I wouldn't be screaming "Come on England!", I'd be silent and thinking "...I'm surrounded by ground-to-air missiles!"
Now that's what I call a buzzkill!

[Nyder]

Well if our javelin competitors are struggling a bit, we could always lob one of the missiles in as a suitable replacement. No-one will notice :-)

[Rob McCow]

I think this is aimed at plane hi-jackers, sadly. Basically they're saying 'Yes, we will blow up a jet plane with 100 passengers over Brixton to avoid it getting to Stratford'.

[Jason Thompson]

The biggest terrorist attack ever involved hijacked planes being flown into buildings full of people. With images of the Twin Towers burning, hell yes I want a couple of ground-to-air missiles as a defence! I'd rather be thinking I'm surrounded by missiles ready to go if necessary than thinking 'if someone flew a plane into this defenceless stadium that's 50,000 people gone up in smoke'.

Sad though that mode of thought may be, has any month gone by since 9/11 where there hasn't been some sort of terrorist activity somewhere in the world on the news? Wouldn't you rather be prepared than leave yourself defenceless just so people feel happier about not having armed people and missiles around?

Seems that security forces here are damned if they do and damned if they don't.

[wombatskidude]

This all sounds very violent. Couldn't we just have some decorative barrage balloons?

It's probably going to deter a few people from flying in from overseas.

I wonder if there'll be an more tickets for UK residents.

[Stuart Wallis]

You can get them hanging onto the barrage balloons!

[Zbigniev Hamson]

When I read the thread title I thought it was going to be something to do with the opening ceremony. Well it would be one way to trump China's fireworks.

[Rob McCow]

So if there was a plane hi-jack, at what point would you send in the missiles? Straight away? Or wait for it to get over London?

With the attack on the World Trade Center, it wasn't clear that the planes were going to fly into the building until the last moment. Plus the people on the plane complied with the terrorists' demands, because they thought it was their best chance of survival. It's slightly more likely now that people would try to overpower any hi-jackers as a result.

Basically, I don't think you can be sure that a hi-jacked plane would be taken on a suicide flight and that if it was, it would reach it's intended target. So I don't think there'd be much opportunity to blow it up. I don't think it's ever going to be as clear-cut as 'Let's kill 100 people to save 50,000'.

Mind you, if it keeps the Americans happy then I suppose we're better off having them.

[Si Hunt]

Having read only the title of this thread, I'd like to say I think it's a great incentive for athletes to perform and fulfil their potential.

Si.

[Rob McCow]

I think it's a great incentive for athletes to perform and fulfil their potential.

But mainly the pole-vaulters.

[Stuart Wallis]

I can see the triple-jumpers enjoying having something large and powerful between their legs, helping them acieve their desired results.

I'll rephrase that...

[Larry]

I
So... this is mainly being done to appease the Americans?

well what would you prefer the British army to provide the security or have 1000 gun totting triger happy Americans providing it.

[Dino]

well what would you prefer the British army to provide the security or have 1000 gun totting triger happy Americans providing it.

Well the British army will have their work cut out for them borrowing other countries equipment for another war that nobody could have seen coming, can barely afford but if you aren't a full red, white and blue Briton then you should go and live in Russia etc, as usual I think.

I don't want any army providing security for the Olympics, it should be our countries security experts and... ah... yeah... right.

[Stuart Wallis]

well what would you prefer the British army to provide the security or have 1000 gun totting triger happy Americans providing it.

I'd rather have the British army thank you - all three of them...

[Dino]

And it gets worse!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/law/2011/d...-olympic-games

As the excitement mounts ahead of the 2012 Olympics, Londoners are already preparing for the disruption the Games will cause to day-to-day life, with the working population being encouraged to work from home during the Olympic period.

But some jobs cannot be done in the front room, for example the work done in the criminal justice system. It now transpires that the criminal courts in the capital will be closed or have a notably reduced capacity for hearing cases during that period.

Last weekend at the southern area sentencing seminar for judges and recorders (part time judges), the judiciary were told to arrange their summer holidays to coincide with the Olympic period, because it would be very unlikely that the criminal courts would be sitting. They were also told that the work of the criminal courts in and around London will be severely disrupted during the six-week period around the games.

The police are privately warning the court administration that they will be unable to service the court system during the Olympics. It is as stark as that. The police accept that officers will not be available to appear as witnesses, and that investigation of "low-level" crime will be reduced.

The transport gridlock will prevent defendants being brought to court from custody throughout London and the south-east. All court users – witnesses, staff and lawyers – will be affected.

Up until now it has been relatively easy to invoke the "spirit of the blitz" when anticipating the breakdown of the transport infrastructure. Waiting over an hour for the tube might be just about tolerable, in fine weather. After all, hosting the Olympics is an honour, for which we all should suffer.

But it gets more serious when essential public services, such as the criminal justice system, are to be crippled. Only a year before the Olympics, the court system was lauded for the swift justice it handed out to rioters. It was argued that the speed with which people were processed through the system saved court time and money, while reassuring the public.

As the courts close or reduce capacity, the backlog of cases will increase. The wait for hearing and trial dates, already a concern, will lengthen. In many cases this will mean the defendant remaining in custody awaiting trial. Judges will be under exceptional pressure to grant bail to accused people if the only reason for the delay of their trial is, to put it bluntly, the Olympics.

This will not play well with the politicians who need to address this inevitable problem expeditiously. It would not make for good headlines if further offences were committed on bail by defendants who gained their liberty because the court could not fit in a trial date due to a clash with the 100 metres.

The longer it takes to get a case to trial, the more trauma is caused to those who are waiting to give evidence. Many of the fundamental reforms of the criminal justice system over the last decade were designed to speed up the trial process and make it easier for witnesses and victims to give their evidence.

The closure or reduced capacity of the criminal courts will also cost the public purse. When the courts are idle, the taxpayer will still have to come up with the money to pay the court staff, the prosecution lawyers in the criminal courts who do not have anyone to prosecute and the judges with no one in the dock.

Perhaps it is time to take a deep breath when it comes to the Olympics. The prioritisation of the Games will not simply result in transport inconvenience. In the next few months we are going to start hearing about a more fundamental impact on essential sections of national life. The criminal justice system is but the first.

Funny, I don't remember reports of other Olympic cities basically going to pot during the games! Stay safe London PS people! It sounds like hell as far as I'm concerned.

[Rob McCow]

Last week we were told to make 'Other Arrangements' to get in to work during the Olympics.

Nice idea, but there IS only one way for me to get in to work! Unless they start putting on helicopters for the staff, I'll be WFH or Out of the Country.

[wombatskidude]

I was at Barcelona in 92. There were thousands of people trying to get a train from Estacio Sants every night. Sometimes we didn't get out of the city and back to the resort till about 4am.

I'm anticipating London will be something like this.

[Stuart Wallis]

The same attude that's shown over gritting the roads, I see - eg. "Due to unforeseen circumstances, winter has arrived this year."