Police Quizzed Over Gatwick Chaos

18 January 2019, 11:21 | Updated: 18 January 2019, 11:23

The commissioner of Sussex police is to question her forces senior officers over last years drone chaos at Gatwick

During their monthly accoutability meeting this afternoon Katy Bourne will be quizzing the officers about how they responded to the drone sightings which shut down the runway at Gatwick Airport for over 30 hours in the weeks before Christmas, disrupting flights for more than 140,000 passengers.

The migrant crisis will also be discussed in detail.

Sussex police say it was recently reported in the media that almost 100 migrants attempted to cross the Channel from France over the Christmas period using small boats and dinghies to reach the coastline. Police & Crime Commissioner, Katy Bourne says this is of particular concern because of the number of ports, harbours and marinas in Sussex.

Sussex Police have asked people living or working on the coastline to report suspicious or unusual activity as part of a multi-agency law enforcement campaign, Project Kraken.

Delivered by the NCA, Border Force and police forces, the project aims to strengthen the general maritime industry’s response to threats and the PCC will be questioning senior officers on the level of support from Sussex Police to this important initiative.

Commenting ahead of the meeting Mrs Bourne said: "At this time, when reports have increased, of migrants attempting to illegally cross the Channel into our country, I want assurance from Sussex Police that they are well positioned to respond to any potential threat along the 80 miles stretch of Sussex coastline. I also want to make sure that they are working with partners to ensure there are appropriate humanitarian measures and facilities in place to support migrants.

"There is a concern that the capacity of the UK Border Force will make Sussex a more frequent target for human trafficking and people smuggling. I want to know the Force’s take on these latest developments and hear the measures they have provisionally put in place to respond."

Other topics under discussion this lunchtime include:

- OPERATION TREBOR - DRONE DISRUPTION AT GATWICK AIRPORT
- OPERATION DRAGONFLY - CHRISTMAS DRINK-AND-DRUG-DRIVE CAMPAIGN 2018 RESULTS
- OPERATION RIBBON RESULTS
- POLICE OFFICER AND PCSO RECRUITMENT UPDATE
- PROPOSED PRECEPT INCREASE 2019/20

And you can join in the conversation on Twitter using #SusPolScrutiny