Secret banned hand luggage list made public

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The European Commission (EC) has been forced by the courts to release a confidential memo it had sent to airlines listing common objects considered to be potential terror threats.

Although passengers were not told in advance that these items were prohibited, security personnel have used the list to prevent canoe paddles, fishing rods and skateboards, for example, from being taken on board.

This week, however, the European Union Court of Justice ruled that it was meaningless to have such a list if it was not available to the travelling public.

According to the judges, the restrictions are not enforceable due to the “fundamental absurdity” of passengers not being informed of the contents of the list of items.

In 2005, after Austrian tennis player, Gottfried Heinrich, refused to allow his racquets to be place in the luggage hold, he was not permitted to board his flight.

Security staff at the Vienna told him that tennis racquets were on the secret list of items classified as potential terrorist threats. Heinrich brought the case to the European Union courts.

Sarah Ludford, who is a Liberal Euro-MP, has campaigned on this issue. She said: “This categorical judgment is a victory for democracy and openness, and a slap in the face of the European Commission and EU governments who thought Kafkaesque methods acceptable.”

Thanks to www.telegraph.co.uk for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

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