Olympics (Security) Debate

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Department: Home Office

Olympics (Security)

Alison Seabeck Excerpts
Thursday 12th July 2012

(12 years, 5 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Baroness May of Maidenhead Portrait Mrs May
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G4S will still be providing a significant number of venue security personnel drawn from a variety of sources to provide security at the Olympic games. We will continue to work with the company. Obviously it recently identified problems with providing the complete number of personnel it was contracted to provide, but we will continue to work with it because it will still play a significant role in the security of the Olympic games.

Alison Seabeck Portrait Alison Seabeck (Plymouth, Moor View) (Lab)
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We have heard across the House concerns about pressures on border security and wider airport security, so will the Home Secretary say what discussions she has had with the Ministry of Defence? Has she had confirmation from the MOD that it can provide any additional troops that might be required for a contingency plan to her existing contingency plan, and will any of those troops be coming from units abolished last week?

Baroness May of Maidenhead Portrait Mrs May
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I can assure the hon. Lady that we have had significant discussions with the MOD about the contingency arrangements, but, as I said in my initial answer, the number of troops includes those on specialist operations as well as those providing venue security. A number of contingency arrangements remain in the plans, however, because we obviously recognise the need to continue to plan for other circumstances. That is why we will have been talking to the MOD. I can assure her that contingency arrangements remain.