Body Scanners: Arguing On
- February 25th, 2010
- Posted by EUA Editor
EU member governments have been told they should go their own way for now, on whether to use electronic body scanners at airports.
A coordinated European Union plan on security measures brought a coy response to the installation of scanners, from Members of the European Parliament and some national governments. See EUAustralia, “Rights qualms over airport safetyâ€, 20.1.10.
After the aborted suicide attack at Christmas on an airliner approaching Detroit, moves in America to use the technology for passenger protection refreshed the debate in Europe.
Now an EC Vice-President, Siim Kallas, EU Commissioner for Transport, has stipulated that current European legislation covered several methods for passenger checks – but not the body scanners.
It was up to individual governments to decide if they wanted to implement the devices, while he organised a debate on the security issue, starting with a report to the European Parliament in April.
Various security measures were needed, he said, and “body scanning technology is not a panacea.”
Reference
EC, “EU aviation security …â€, Media Release, Brussels, 10.2.10, MEMO/10/34.
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