Port terror watch lists ‘compromised’, says High Court Judge

A High Court Judge has said that port alert systems, crucial for limiting the movement of terrorists and criminals attempting to leave Britain, have been ‘compromised’ by a lack of checks. The concerns were raised by an police officer, who has not been named, who told the court that adding names to the watch lists or on the Police National Computer did not guarantee that they would be stopped when attempting to leave the country, as many airlines and border controls do not carry out proper checks against the list. Mr Justice MacDonald said: "The officer (had said) that she has personal experience of individuals being able to leave the country notwithstanding a port alert being in place. "The officer [went on to say] that the port alert system is compromised by the fact that not all airlines carry out checks, particularly if tickets are purchased close to the date of travel, and that it is possible to travel to another European country for onward travel without passport checks being undertaken.” The issues were brought to light following a hearing in the family division of the High Court, after police and social workers intervened to prevent a nine year old girl being taken to Afghanistan to marry an 18-year-old man. Forced marriage protection orders were placed on both parents, meaning the girl’s name would be placed on a port alert system, but the officer warned that this was not necessarily enough to prevent her being taken out of the UK.