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26-6-2003 Scotsman Security experts warn business leaders Scotland is a soft touch for terrorist attacks By Gethin Chamberlain TERRORISTS deterred by heightened levels of security in London could turn to Scotland in search of softer, more vulnerable targets, business leaders have been warned. Despite the breach of security at Windsor Castle at the weekend, increased security measures in the UK capital are credited with inhibiting the chances of a successful terrorist attack. But as the hysteria which followed the events of 11 September, 2001, begins to recede, there are concerns that complacency may be creeping back in. Security analysts have warned that Scotland contains a number of potential targets which could be attractive to terrorist groups, including nuclear power stations, oil and gas facilities and utilities such as water and electricity generators. So serious is the perceived threat that on Tuesday, many of the country's top businesses and business organisations attended a private summit meeting with security experts in Edinburgh to discuss what could be done to prepare for and counter possible attacks. The experts warned it would be wrong to assume the threat had receded. Yesterday, Paul Doran, a senior analyst with the Control Risks Group, said: "It would be dangerous complacency to say that the Islamist terrorist threat is isolated in London. "We have to bear in mind that since 9/11, there have been terrorism-related arrests all over the country. Al-Qaeda has shown itself to be a thinking organisation and their operations are well planned. "As targets become increasingly harder in London, you have to wonder whether the terrorist leaders will sit down and weigh up their chances elsewhere. Even if you are in a location which you feel is pretty secure, you need processes in place." The identity of those who attended the summit has not been disclosed, but it is thought to include representatives from banks, finance houses, power companies and Scottish Enterprise. The aim was to make businesses aware of the need to review their security arrangements in the light of the continuing threat of terrorist attacks. Andrew Fulton, the chairman of the Scottish North American Business Council and one of the hosts of the meeting, said that in the aftermath of the Iraq war, it was a reminder of the need for vigilance. "We haven't come up here to scare the pants off Scottish businesses but we just want them to have a healthy dose of realism," he said. Companies need to have plans in place to deal with the aftermath of any terrorist incident as well as trying to prevent attacks, he added. Mr Doran said: "They need systems to ensure that they can return to normal as quickly as possible." Although he said many companies were taking the threat seriously, he warned that the range of possible targets was now much wider than many people believed. "The threat from Islamist terrorism is very different from the 1980s threat from Irish terrorism," he said. "The threat is wider and contains more potential areas of vulnerability, such as agriculture and the utilities." Mr Doran said a balance had to be struck between the need for security and the effect on day-to-day living, but he said the main priority was to convince companies of the need to make some sort of contingency plans. "The problem is not so much convincing companies about what to do after they have been convinced of the threat, the key is convincing them that there is a threat in the first place." Kevin Rosser, an analyst on the Middle East, said companies had to accept that there was a limit to what could be done to protect against attack, while taking what precautions they could. "There is no such thing as a perfect defence, and that is what people have to get used to," he said. "We don't have a crystal ball and we can't say where is going to be attacked next. "One of the dangers is that people try to second guess where the risks are and get complacent." He said considerable progress had been made against terror networks such as al-Qaeda, but their fund-raising operations had remained relatively unscathed and companies should remember that successful attacks - such as the Bali bomb or the events of 11 September - were not expensive to organise. "You are always vulnerable to the accusation that you are selling fear to people," he said. "There is a dilemma between wanting to make people aware of the threat but to do it in a way which does not make people unnecessarily paranoid.
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................................................................................................................. Copyright ©2004 Gethin Chamberlain. All rights reserved. |
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