Oral Answers to Questions

Gregg McClymont Excerpts

Monday 9th July 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I think we get the gist of the Minister’s point.

[Gregg McClymont (Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East) (Lab)]

7. What progress she has made on Olympic security preparations; and if she will make a statement.

[The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Mrs Theresa May)]

The Government and everyone involved are focused on delivering a safe, secure and successful games. We are confident in our planning and are leaving nothing to chance in our aim to deliver games that London, the UK and the whole world can enjoy.

[Gregg McClymont]

The Olympics are only 18 days away, but we learned over the weekend that G4S still needs to fill 9,000 security positions. Without those staff, security will surely be compromised. Will the Home Secretary therefore confirm that she has signed off G4S’s recruitment schedule? Will she also give a personal assurance to the House that those 9,000 security staff can be recruited, vetted and trained in the next 18 days?

[Mrs May]

As the hon. Gentleman may be aware, venue security is being delivered by the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games, G4S and the military. It is a huge operation to protect more than 100 different venues, and delivering it is a big challenge. The Home Office has put in place a number of assurance processes to ensure that we have effective and robust scrutiny of venue security planning. We have been testing our plans thoroughly and are confident that our partners will deliver a safe and secure games, but we are not complacent and will leave nothing to chance, so we will stay on the case.