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Does getting on a plane give the state license to investigate you?

Border control I ask that question because last year, 47,000 people had their travel habits, family, friends and backgrounds investigated after having bought a plane ticket. As the Mail on Sunday reports:

The flyers were singled out by the ‘terrorist detector’ database, monitoring millions of British tourists and other travellers.

Checks included scrutiny of the police national computer, financial records and analysis of ‘known associates’ before people were cleared for travel.

Yet it is understood the £1.2billion system has never led to the arrest of a terrorist. Police have also used it to produce 14,000 intelligence reports on travellers for ‘future use’. They can be shared by security services worldwide.

‘Suspect’ requests likely to lead to innocent holidaymakers receiving ‘red flags’ as potential terrorists include ordering a vegetarian meal, asking for an over-wing seat and travelling with a foreign-born husband or wife.

I wrote about this very database a few months ago when the Home Office were proudly announcing the opening of a new hub for these checks in Manchester.

As was the case then, I can't help feeling that 9/11 has created a huge aeroplane-paranoia and things like ordering a vegetarian meal should not give the state complete license to go searching through our financial records.

We call for a complete reform of the e-borders programme in our election manifesto – we hope the new coalition government will listen.

By Dylan Sharpe

Posted on May 17, 2010 by Big Brother Watch Posted in Home
  • Purlieu

    £600,000 per “inverstigation”
    Good value chaps well done.

  • davidb

    “Checks included scrutiny of the police national computer, financial records and analysis of ‘known associates’ before people were cleared for travel.”
    Does anyone know the mechanism for checking “financial records”.
    Do they have online access to all our bank accounts?

  • AB

    There is credit-checking, and other nominally ‘fraud-prevention’ data sharing, which under part 3 of the Serious Crime Act 2007 is almost unlimited. Further it is a declared primary aim of the e-Borders system to pass information to HMRC, who are proud to announce they are keeping a eye on you if you are a resident going to a tax haven, if you are not resident in Britain but they would like to treat you as if you are, or if you might be working abroad.