Written question asked by Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative) on Wednesday, 24 July 2002, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 22 October 2002. It was answered by Lord Blunkett (Labour) on Tuesday, 22 October 2002 on behalf of the Home Office.

Home Office

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what consultation there has been on the revised rules under Schedule 7 to the Terrorism Act 2000 (Information) Order 2002; and what estimate he has made of (a) the additional time it will take for airlines to collect the data from passengers and (b) the potential delays caused by this procedure.

Answer: Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what consultation there has been on the revised rules under Schedule 7 to the Terrorism Act 2000 (Information) Order 2002; and what estimate he has made of (a) the additional time it will take for airlines to collect the data from passengers and (b) the potential delays caused by this procedure. [74084] Mr. Blunkett: Following the issue of a consultation document in March this year, two rounds of consultation meetings between Home Officials and representatives of the air and sea industries took place between April and July and in August. A third round is scheduled to run from 22 October to 14 November. In addition, I met representatives of the industries on 11 July and my hon. Friend the Minister of State (Beverley Hughes) met them on 16 October, keeping our commitment to ensure that representatives of the industry have access to Ministers. These meetings have considered all the issues relevant to implementation, including how best to keep potential costs and delays to a minimum, while ensuring we are doing everything possible to disrupt and deter potential terrorists.

Secondary information