MPs tackle Ruth Kelly over Heathrow security
October 25, 2007
The House of Commons heard a brief exchange on Heathrow's security woes on Tuesday.
Several members ganged up on Secretary of State for transport Ruth Kelly. Among the complaints:
Intolerable third-world queues at immigration ... Seeing the businessmen of the world queuing up to enter Britain, as if they were in some third-world country, is shaming
Denis McShane, Labour
We [travellers from Scotland] have to wait for up to three quarters of an hour to go through security
Brian H Donohoe, Labour
The CBI has warned that Heathrow hassle is an increasing threat to inward investment in the UK. When is the Secretary of State going to start knocking heads together to get something done to improve the quality of service at an airport that is rapidly becoming a national embarrassment?
Theresa Villiers, Conservative
Angrier than all of the above, however, was a member of the public who commented on the debate on theyworkforyou.com.
Incensed by Denis McShane's observation about queuing businessmen, she countered that "I would like to remind MPs that a business man and a poor man have all the same rights."
Nathan Midgley, web producer
Nathan Midgley
