Examination of Witnesses

Part of Civil Aviation Bill – in a Public Bill Committee at 12:00 pm on 21 February 2012.

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Gaynor McLaughlin: I actually think that it will improve with the CAA. If the CAA’s approach to aviation security compliance mirrors its approach to aviation safety, where the responsibility to demonstrate and provide evidence for compliance rests with the industry, we will get a greater level of compliance and more information. At the moment, there are too few inspectors, who are far too into the detail.

The analogy I would use is that it is a little bit like putting your car into a garage for an MOT. The Government inspects the MOT stations and ensures that the engineers are accredited, but they do not get under the car and inspect the exhaust, which feels like what we have at the moment. Government inspectors are looking for holes in fences and are looking at whether the actual measures are being done properly.