Former counter terrorism minister Lord West, who held office at the time, revealed how al Qaeda terrorists attempted to poison London’s water supplies in 2008, but were thwarted by the security services. The government at the time tackled Westminster over steps to protect Britain’s reservoirs against attack by hostile forces.
Lord West, who served as home office minister for security and counter-terrorism from 2007 to 2010, said in 2008, there were attempts by eight al Qaeda operatives to poison the water supplies of north London. “I am pleased to say that our agencies worked brilliantly to stop it from happening,” he said further.
The former Navy chief added that as a result of this incident, a series of efforts were put on the police response times, indicators of where the outflows from reservoirs went and new barriers. “Where has all that work gone? These things somehow seem to disappear,” he said further.
These revelations have come following the publication of comprehensive military plans to protect the UK amid threats from Russia and China. Sir Keir Starmer praised the strategic defence review (SDR), published earlier this week and said that it would create a “battle-ready, armour-clad” nation.
Response from departments
In response, Lady Hayman from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said that, “I will certainly look into it, because it is an important point.” Earlier, the minister said that Defra recognises how the drinking water supply can become a potential target for hostile actors.
However, Lord Harris of Haringey, chairman of the National Preparedness Commission, questioned Defra for merely monitoring and said: “I wonder whether her department is being a tad complacent in talking simply about monitoring the threat rather than looking at what practical arrangements can be made.” He questioned the department’s inadequacy at making practical arrangements for situations like when a drone deposits something in a reservoir.
Countering him, Lady Hayman said tackling such diverse threats requires a cross-government and cross-society response. “In Defra, we work closely to look at the threats and the appropriate levels of response, drawing on expert advice from the National Protective Security Authority, the National Cyber Security Centre and the home office.
Former Metropolitan Police chief Lord Hogan-Howe, who led the UK’s largest force from 2011 to 2017, talked about his concern related to confusion between the Home Office, Defra and others. He said, “I worry that there is sometimes confusion between the Home Office, Defra and others about who is looking after security…. it needs to be higher in the priorities than it presently appears.”
(With Inputs from PA Media)
