Netherlands, U.K. To Use Body Scanners
The Netherlands and United Kingdom have responded to the foiled Christmas Day bomb attack on an Amsterdam-Detroit flight by authorizing the use of millimeter-wave body scanners to screen passengers. However, other European states said they are not yet prepared to introduce the scanners, citing concerns over privacy, effectiveness, radiation, costs and airport delays. European Commission officials are poised to meet representatives from the interior ministries of European Union member states later this week to discuss the issue.
The first European country to say it will use body scanners was the Netherlands. On Dec. 30, 2009, interior minister Guusje ter Horst announced the machines would be in use for all passengers flying to the United States before the end of January. Passengers who refuse a scan will be subjected to a full body pat-down. Amsterdam's Schiphol airport installed 17 body scanners in 2008, but opted not to make them compulsory for passengers after receiving official advice from the European Commission that there were privacy and human rights implications. At present, scanners cannot be used under EU law, but member states may apply for a waiver to allow their use.
On Monday, the Dutch government announced it would buy an additional 60 scanners.
Meanwhile, last Sunday, British prime minister Gordon Brown announced in a BBC television interview that scanners would be introduced in the United Kingdom as soon as possible. Heathrow airport operator BAA confirmed the following day that it has ordered more scanners but their usage on a pilot basis has already fallen afoul of U.K. anti-child pornography laws governing the creation of images of naked minors. In consequence, passengers under the age of 18 cannot be subjected to the scans.
Other EU countries, including Germany, France and Spain, have stated in the past week or so that they remain, at best, equivocal about body scanners. Germany's federal police authority is testing a new generation of machines that are more effective at protecting passenger modesty, but no decision is expected until the summer. In the meantime, the German government has announced an increase in pat-down searches for U.S.-bound passengers, who Lufthansa is advising to check in at least three hours before departure.
Although the European Commission is discussing the issue with members states this week, a spokeswoman told the Financial Times that EU-wide legislation to introduce body scanners is unlikely before concerns on human rights and health are addressed. A European Parliament resolution passed in 2008 described scanners as an affront to human rights.