The 2012 London Games were also a global showcase for the capabilities of the UK security industry, one of the most diverse and technically advanced industries in the world. Exporting the knowledge and experience of the UK security industry internationally is a priority for us, bringing clear political, operational and economic benefits both to the UK and to our partners.
So said the Home Office minister James Brokenshire who spoke this week at the second Securing Asia conference in central London. He recalled that he led a security focused trade mission to India earlier this year: ‘trade between our countries is on track to double by 2015, and more Indian investment comes to the UK than to the rest of the EU combined’.
For the speech in full visit the gov.uk website.
While the minister went through the UK CONTEST strategy and its four ‘pillars’: Pursue; Prevent; Protect; and Prepare, he did stress the need for the authorities to work with others.
He said: “With the increasing attractiveness of international civil aviation as a target; with terrorists becoming ever more creative in their attempts to circumvent our security measures; and with the additional challenges presented by developments in the way we communicate, success is more than ever dependent on collaboration with like-minded partners overseas. It also relies on close working with the private sector, and the capabilities and technologies they provide.”
He also covered the cyber threat: “Cyber crime does not recognise international boundaries. For many countries in Asia and elsewhere, a rapidly developing digital infrastructure means that safeguards often fail to keep pace with the potential for misuse. Working closely with these countries to share UK expertise and help build their cyber security capability is clearly of mutual benefit.”
He hailed also the 2012 London Games: “London 2012 captured the attention of the world. The success of the Games I believe is testament to the meticulous planning of the many organisations involved: this was the biggest ever peace-time logistical exercise that the UK has seen.
“The safety and security operation alone engaged over 50,000 people across Government, police, military, border security, private security, volunteers, and the London 2012 organising committee. 14,000 athletes, 11 million tickets sold, 150 visiting Heads of State, half a million extra transport journeys per day – the challenge was enormous. Terrorism was the greatest security threat to our Games, and we planned accordingly. Our approach was intelligence-led and risk based, giving us the flexibility to respond to changes and scale our activity in response to changes in the threat level.
“Our focus included designing security into Games venues and supporting infrastructure; securing UK borders and transport networks; proactive use of intelligence to identify and respond to emerging threats; and preparing effective responses to mitigate the impact of any disruptions to the Games. We designed an accreditation system which conducted over 1 million accurate background checks, and we built a sophisticated cyber security wall around the Games, ensuring sufficient resilience and fast responses to attempted breaches.”
