Adventure Travel Online

The UK and the US appear to be rushing into deploying new Airport scanners which have been widely touted as 'peep shows' for security staff and as having limited ability in detecting the determined terrorist. See this feature.

Having your privates on inspection is one thing but what's of more concern is a report just released by the Inter-Agency Commission on Radiation Safety which highlights the risks of airport body screenings and in particular the danger of cancer causing radiation.

The Commission is made up of the European Commission, International Atomic Energy Agency, Nuclear Energy Agency and the World Health Organisation. The report is advising that pregnant women and children should not be scanned.

So what do you think? Is this another case of the UK, led by a headline obsessed Government, rushing into ill thought out and expensive knee jerk reaction or a decisive and essential security move? Would you let a child or pregnant member of your family walk through one of these?

i like how when they were first going on about these scanners they were insuring that they were 100% safe.

We travel in terror and that is what 'they' wanted to achieve. So does this mean they've won?

Anything that gives off high levels of radiation is a worry, but do we know exactly how high these levels are? Is this report scare mongering and blowing this totally out of proportion? If it isn't I should be wearing a radiation suit just walking down the street!

If I were a woman with a bun in the oven I certainly wouldn't walk through one of these, seeing as in hospitals it is not deemed safe to have an x-ray.

It's a toughie!

The report says that radiations levels are 'low' but what 'low' means is not quantified on the info sheet I have. But it does advise that pregnant women and children should not be scanned.

Most other countries are carrying out further tests before buying and using this equipment.

As to who to believe...our current crop of politicians (from all parties) have done nothing to earn my trust.

Yup, and that's why I didn't vote in the last election.

As Treebeard once said, "I am not altogether on anyone's side because no one is altogether on my side."

I know one thing though. Radiation or not, I would crawl through a muddy assault course filled with electric eels if it meant I could travel and get my complimentary pillow and blankie.

Be careful for what you wish Robynne, I saw a fish delivery wagon packed outside the security office at Heathrow last week. Airport departures are already an assault course, are they not?

Very true. They're not far off it. At least a proper dirty assault course would be fun. Other passengers' chessey feet however, are not.

Alun, any chance of a reference to the Inter-Agency Commission report? Or even a copy?
Just for infor - I was scanned in some of the original trials - just don't look at your image if you are even a little overweight - it ain't pretty.

I was only provided with an 'executive summary' Jim. I'll ask for the full report and see what happens.

Where did the trials take place and when?

The trials I took part in were in Heathrow. If you opted for the scanner you were allowed to bypass the queue for security checking.
I see there is a new article on the Department for Transport web site on the risks from scanners.