Knife arches at every rail station 'highly unlikely', senior counter terrorism officer says

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Savell was speaking to security correspondents at Scotland Yard, alongside the new head of Counter Terrorism Policing, Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor.

AC Taylor said there should be “no kneejerk reaction” to the stabbings on the King’s Cross-bound train on Saturday evening.

He said that transportation in general has its risks and has been targeted in the past, but there was nothing to suggest any elevated threats to the rail network.

DAC Savell said that the Huntingdon attack, which has not been declared a terrorist incident, highlighted the broader “vulnerability to the public space” where large groups of people gather.

He was asked whether metal detectors to search for knives and other weapons on the rail network might help mitigate the risk.

He said: "Knife arches at every rail station are highly unlikely because it's just not practical to do."

Assistant Commissioner Taylor said that counter terror policing was dealing with an increasing caseload across multiple threat types.

There has been a steady increase in the caseload associated with the threat from Islamist terrorists.

"Threats are being pushed from overseas" he said, with a desire to strike targets in the West.

Police and the security services have disrupted 19 late-stage plots over the past five years.

Earlier this month, the Director General of MI5, Ken McCallum said al-Qaeda and the Islamic State terror group were “once again becoming more ambitious.. taking advantage of instability overseas to gain firmer footholds.”

AC Taylor said his officers were currently involved in 800 live investigations.

Since the Southport attack, he said referrals to the Prevent counter extremism programme had surged.

So far this year, more than 7,000 referrals have been made to Prevent, already ahead of the 6,922 referrals during the whole or last year.

Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter