Noticed this Daily Express headline at the newsagents this morning.
Having had my scare-mongering detector set off I looked for a more reliable source of information but apparently even the BBC is at it.
BBC News: Election ‘could be terror target’
Terrorists might try to target the UK in the run-up to the election, London’s most senior police officer has said. Sir Ian Blair said terror groups would remember the effect of the Madrid bomb on Spain’s general election last year.
Other potential targets were the royal wedding and the UK’s presidency of the European Union and G8, he said. He refused to say if there was specific information about the risk of a pre-poll attack. No 10 was similarly cautious but said the threat was real.
‘Difficult issues’
The comments come after Tony Blair defended his controversial anti-terror proposals, warning that it would be wrong to wait for an attack before acting. Sir Ian told a meeting of the Metropolitan Police Authority it would be “unwise” to speculate about whether there was specific information about risks of a pre-election attack.
But he said: “Terrorists have long memories. They understand what happened in Madrid and know what the impact of that was on the Spanish electorate. “This year we are responsible for the EU presidency, presidency of the G8, a royal wedding and a general election.
“There are obvious and enormous targets which we have to deal with.” Sir Ian said the debate over anti-terror plans was one for politicians, not the police, who would enforce any new powers.
More…
This ain’t news it is just speculation. There is no intelligence of any specific threat of terrorist attack, this is just yet more fear-mongering by the Government and the police.
Yes with such high-profile events happening in the UK this year the security services should be on heightened alert but it does not mean that the public should be fed this wild speculation. Call me cynical but I believe that this announcement is nothing more than another scare story to help justify the Government’s proposal to hold terror suspects without trial under house arrest indefinitely.
