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Earlier in the day, Mr McNulty met Deputy Chief Constable Andy Trotter at Stratford station, East London, where he was shown how search arches and wands are being used to detect deadly weapons on the transport network. An extra 85 search arches and 566 wands have been provided to the ten police forces, including the Met, participating in the Tackling Knives Action Programme.
Policing and Counter-Terrorism Minister Tony McNulty:
"I am committed to ensuring police have the latest equipment they need to protect the public and I am pleased to be able to see first hand the successful action being taken by the British Transport Police.
"The use of knife arches and wands by the British Transport Police has proved to be a great success. Between April and June this year there were 93 arrests following thousands of people going through a scanner on the London Underground or London rail system network.
"Tackling terrorism is also a key priority particularly for the British Transport Police. The Special Response Unit plays a key role in public safety, minimising disruption from security alerts to the rail and Underground system in London, as well having a 24 hour response capability to potential terrorism incidents on the transport network in the capital."
The BTP have been using search arches and wands on the London transport network since 2006 as part of Operation Shield.
Deputy Chief Constable Andy Trotter from British Transport Police said:
"The terrorist threat remains high and real. Our specialist units in London are a vital element not only in keeping the capital's transport system safe, but also in minimising disruption to the Tube and rail systems.
"The rail and Tube systems are a low crime environment and we are determined to make them even safer for passengers and staff. The use of modern scanning technology to prevent offensive weapons being carried on the system is one way in which we are achieving that."
NOTES
Operation Shield launched in 2006 as a national campaign by the British Transport Police to tackle knife carrying on Britain's railway networks. For the first time, walk-through metal detectors, similar to those used at airports, were used in an effort to eradicate offensive weapons on the railway system. These detectors are fully portable and can be used anywhere at anytime. They will be accompanied by a team of officers, in uniform and plain clothes, who will arrest anyone in possession of weapons.
The tactic is deployed in hot spot areas when violent crime is prevalent. It has also been deployed to cover major public events such as Luton and Notting Hill Carnivals. BTP is a national Force deployed across Britain covering rail, Underground and tram links.
In August, the Home Office gave £5,000 grant for the purchase of hand held metal detecting wands for use at the Notting Hill Carnival and other future events. Last year, the Tackling Gangs Action Programme gave £100,000 to the British Transport Police. This was used to buy portable interview kits, search equipment and to pay for officer time in operations.
Since the start of Operation Shield up to 16 July, there has been:
* 87,126 through the search arches
* Resulting in 11,651 stop and searches
* 927 arrests - 292 (drugs), 49 (warrant), 405 (other), 181 (Offensive weapons)
* Total number of weapons recovered - 370 (this includes 2 firearms)
In June 2008, the Home Secretary outlined plans to focus a programme of action on knife crime hotspots and announced an initial investment of £2 million. Over 55,000 people have been stopped and searched, 2,500 arrests have been made for knife-related offences and over 1,600 knives have been seized since the Government's new Tackling Knives Action Programme (TKAP) was launched.
The ten areas taking part in the TKAP are London, Essex, Lancashire, West Yorkshire, Merseyside, the West Midlands, Greater Manchester, Nottinghamshire, South Wales and Thames Valley.
On 13 July 2008 the Home Secretary announced that the ACPO lead on knife crime, DAC Alf Hitchcock (Metropolitan Police Service) would head up the new TKAP.
The Programme, which will run until March 2009, is delivering tough enforcement combined with education, prevention work and information campaigns designed to keep youngsters on the right track.
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