The UK’s House of Lords has recommended the country’s government “urgently” seek the help of the EU and NATO to protect the London Olympics from terrorist action.
UK newspaper The Daily Telegraph reports that the House of Lords EU Committee said the government should begin talks with the EU Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC) “as a matter of urgency”. The EU MIC has previously placed chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear decontamination teams on standby in case of terrorist attacks during the Euro 2004 football championships.
The Telegraph quoted Lord Jopling, the EU Committee’s chairman as saying, “"It is increasingly clear that the 2012 Olympics could be a prime target for terrorists."
"It is vital that the Government takes every possible step to ensure that other EU Member States are fully prepared to assist the UK in the case of a potential attack.
"We are surprised that this process is not already in hand, and we recommend the Government begin liaising with the MIC as a matter of urgency.”
Jopling also urged NATO involvement in the security plan.
"The lack of co-operation between the EU and Nato is especially worrying in the area of civil protection and crisis management, where there is virtually no contact between the bodies involved," he said. "This cannot be allowed to continue."
"We hope Nato's 60th anniversary summit next month will be an opportunity to remedy this."
