OZ Stands

Airports left with very thin blue line Natalie O'Brien and Peter Wilson | May 02, 2008

ALMOST a quarter of the extra police promised to tighten security at Australia's major airports are still not in place, three years after a scathing review warned that security was inadequate and dysfunctional.

At least two states with international airports - Western Australia and Queensland - will not have the full complement of police numbers in place until the end of the year at the earliest.

Other promises that have not been met in the wake of the review by British aviation expert John Wheeler include the upgrade of closed-circuit television systems, better security checks and training for private security guards, and an intelligence system to share information regarding crime and terrorism.

And claims by the Department of Infrastructure that the X-ray screening of cargo being loaded on to passenger flights within Australia had been expanded have been contradicted.

Scott Connolly, the national aviation officer for the Transport Workers Union, yesterday said only a very small volume, if any, of domestic freight was being X-rayed before being loaded on to passenger jets. "This is an ongoing issue. What are we waiting for?" he said.

Sir John last night said the failures pointed to the need for a further review. "It is always a good idea to independently check that things are actually happening," he told The Australian in London. "You have to go back and unblock the processes sometimes.

"I believe the outgoing prime minister (John Howard) was implementing the recommendations and that Mr (Kevin) Rudd is just as keen and believes my recommendations are important.

"But the relationship between the states and the commonwealth is always more difficult and there may be obstacles to things like actually putting in place the required number of police. That is the sort of obstacle you need to look at."

Sir John's review was commissioned after the Howard government was forced to take action following reports in The Australian about security breaches at Sydney airport. Despite his denials, former Customs officer Allan Kessing was last year convicted of leaking information about lax security to The Australian.

Sir John's report highlighted a string of flaws in security, including a culture of under-reporting and tolerance of theft at airports compounded by a lack of on-site police to do anything about it.

The report recommended the formation of specially trained on-site police units to overcome problems with "inadequate and dysfunctional" security. Sir John pointed out the need for co-operation between state and federal police, including the appointment of airport police commanders. Those commanders, provided by the Australian Federal Police, are in place, but the full complement of staff is not.

According to AFP figures, there is a shortfall of 80 police needed to make up the total force of 334 police officers to be deployed at the 11 major airports considered by the Wheeler review. AFP commissioner Mick Keelty has blamed a national shortage of trained officers.

The problem is most acute in Queensland. At Brisbane and Cairns airports, there are fewer than half the 118 police promised to safeguard the aviation hubs.

A Queensland police spokeswoman said 53 police were in place and the force was still recruiting the remaining 65 men.

Sir John made 17 recommendations, with four of them still not in place. A Customs spokesman said the upgrade and expansion of the CCTV coverage would be completed by June 30.

Additional reporting: Paul Maley

Airport policing units in disarray Natalie O'Brien | June 02, 2008

THE $300 million specialised policing units set up to protect the nation's international airports in response to the scathing Wheeler review of airport security, are on the verge of collapse.

Plummeting morale, operational conflicts and officers "clamouring" to get out, have undermined the attempt over the past three years to tighten security at Australia's 11 main airports.

An investigation by The Australian has revealed government agencies that have contributed staff and services to the joint airport intelligence and investigation teams are also reviewing their position in the policing teams.

Police Federation of Australia chief executive Mark Burgess has called for an urgent review.

"It just has not worked," he said. "It has always been an obligation of the AFP and, when you put it on to eight different agencies, this is the outcome."

Federal Police Association president Jim Torr said the unitsrepresented a "band-aid response".

Mr Torr said international airports were the responsibility of the federal Government and its policing agency.

British expert John Wheeler was commissioned in 2005 to review airport security after the Howard government was forced to take action when The Australian exposed a string of breaches at Sydney airport.

Sir John's 17 recommendations included the formation of specially trained on-site police units to overcome problems with "inadequate and dysfunctional" security.

The report called for co-operation between state and federal police assigned to patrol the airports.

The Australian revealed last month there was a shortfall of about 80 police in making up the total cohort of 334 police officers.

Since the Wheeler report, the federal Government has spent $886 million upgrading security, with $354 million for the specialised Unified Policing Models.

However, police sources say the situation is worse than ever, with many state police officers clamouring to get out and others unable to be convinced to replace them because of infighting between law enforcement agencies, and discontent over entitlements, equipment and training.

The Board of Airline Representatives of Australia is seeking another audit of airport policing, saying key areas have seen little improvement since the Wheeler review.

It is feared the problems will be exacerbated by federal cuts in last month's budget of $1.5 million to the AFP's airport liaison officers network, and the $2.5million funding for the AFP's surge capacity.

It is understood the situation with airport security teams is so parlous that the federal Government is considering suggestions to withdraw the AFP-led teams from the airports.

The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, which is responsible for overseeing the implementation of the Wheeler report, did not respond to questions from The Australian.

The Victorian Police Association says its members who are involved in the airport policing teams have a range of grievances, including their members not receiving the same pay and entitlements as their AFP counterparts, even though they are working as AFP officers.

NSW Police Association secretary Peter Remfrey said the issues had been mounting and also included complaints about operational issues and equipment, including lockers, guns and even provision of raincoats.

"All the issues contribute to the lack of attraction of police to join," Mr Remfrey said. "There is a level of frustration over what ought to be bread-and-butter issues for the union which can be resolved."

AFP 'ignores' requests for police review Natalie O'Brien | September 26, 2008

THE Australian Federal Police has "studiously ignored" requests by the nation's peak airline group to review its new airport policing model, amid concerns little has improved since the scathing Wheeler study of security three years ago.

Warren Bennett, executive director of the Board of Airline Representatives of Australia, said the organisation had taken its request to senior AFP levels but nothing was done.

"We have repeatedly asked the AFP to undertake a review of all policing models," Mr Bennett said. "But we find it difficult to get a response ... in terms of getting them to discuss the issues -- there's nothing."

The AFP was given the job of running the new $300 million airport policing units, recommended by the Wheeler review in 2005.

The Australian understands the force has undertaken a review to determine how its operations measure up to the Wheeler recommendations, but refuses to release it. Mr Bennett said he was unaware of the report.

An AFP spokesman said it had communicated regularly with Mr Bennett. He said the force had offered to speak to association members but Mr Bennett had declined the offer.

"The aviation review was produced to inform a planned review of the unified policing model, which was due to start after a full 12 months of operation," the spokesman said.

British expert John Wheeler was commissioned to review airport security after the Howard government was forced to take action when The Australian exposed breaches at Sydney Airport. Sir John's recommendations included integrating state and federal police at airports, and forming specially trained on-site police units.

Despite the changes, airlines have been complaining of in-fighting between state and federal police officers and poor emergency response times.

Earlier this year The Australian reported that the police units set up to protect the international airports were on the verge of collapse. Plummeting morale, operational conflicts and a shortage of police had undermined the attempt to tighten security.Under the Wheeler plan, 334 police were to be deployed to the main airports.

At least two states with international airports, Western Australia and Queensland, will not have their full complement until the end of the year.

September 27, 2008 09:13pm