Yikes! I see customs officers have impounded 1500kgs of rotting food from a Ghana flight that landed at RAF London Kent Ramsgate Manston International Airport! The haul included 'fish that was so badly decayed some of it had become liquid'. Blurgh!
Counterfeit cosmetics and prescription medicines were found among the, er, smelly goo. Not quite the bright, exciting future fantasised about in the airport's Daft Bastard Plan, methinks!
Click here to read full story on BBC website
Update: Thanet Extra is reporting that the rotting cargo concealed booze and ciggies, not cosmetics and medicines as reported by the Beeb. Click here to read more.
24 comments:
If this is the sort of stuff they're bringing in I can see why all of the Councillors want to allow night-flights!!! People are less likely to see what kind of filth they're bringing in if it's dark.
You have got this so wrong!.....
Maxicrop Liquid Fish Fertilizer
Made from fresh fish from the Atlantic Ocean and contains no chemical additives. Maxicrop Liquid Fish Fertilizer (5-1-1) contains naturally occurring amino acids, as well as a huge complex of chelated minor elements.
But you wont be able to buy it in Woolies. (Thanet to loose 4 more shops?)
Nothing HM Customs haven't seen elsewhere, not unique to Manston. Whoever is responsible obviously thought Manston would be a soft target since no HMRC are actually based there, its covered by mobile officers.
It's a worry without doubt but it's an event that needs to be placed in context I suspect.
Without knowing the full story I am directly aware of how well-funded serious and organised crime groups are constantly looking for new opportunities to exploit. All international airports experience smuggling and you only have to consider the popular nickname for Air Canada (Air Cannabis)
The good news is that clearly the attempt was discovered and dealt with appropriately. with luck whoever was involved won't be trying Manston again.
Given that flight arrivals have been delayed and passengers have hung around for hours due to no shows by customs does not bode well.
As for this so called isolated incident utter tosh, the HMRC have been wilfully negligent at Manston perhaps due to the failure by the DoT to check on the number of permits being given out like confetti for the dodgy end of the fright carriers.
The sad thing is that Government officials will carp on about how the system works without actually stating how many ramp checks did not happen.
So all of a sudden the 'experts' rear their ugly heads. Maybe Anon 7.30 can tell us when the Council and which Councillors have said that we want to allow night flights ?
If indeed it was some sort of fertiliser and any gardener will tell you that fishmeal or fish based fertilisers are excellent, IF it was fertiliser what doesnt bode well is that HM Customs failed to see it for what it was.
As Manston becomes busier HMRC will base permanent staff there as will the Immigration Service.
Unusually I have to agree with DR. Moores also Anon 7.50 and place this event in context. Sadly this will be used to fuel the paranoia by those opposed to the Airport and to whip up ill informed hysteria in an attempt to stop its further development and progress.
councillor, you've you shown your cards as most TDC councillors ], as a fervent supporter of the airport. Can I ask a very simple question, which I am sure you can answer very easily as well.
Your council and Infratils plans for 6mm passengers a year works out to a flight every few minutes fro 16 hours a day. What is a busy Manston going to do to the resident who live under its flightpath?
some further details for you to ponder while you type a response.
TDC do not monitor noise levels currently at the airport. This is left to Infratil.
Infratil do not measure noise levels at the airport either, but use a method which takes historical noise levels for certain aircraft, versus the takeoff/landing logs kept by infratil. This obvisously does not take into consideration the dynamic of each street, local geography, wind, cloud cover etc, so does not paint a true picure of each households npise levels. That said, its an industry minimum standard, so no rules are being broken. BAA and operators of other medium sized airports (which Manston longs to be) do physically place monitoring equipment on their apporoachs. As a councillor supporting the development of the airport, I safely assuming you are responding to the Draft plan asking infratil to follow suit.
When a westerly approach is taken to Manston (which is for 70% of the time) all of Ramsgate town centre from Boundar Road in the North, to London road in the south, all the way up to the airport falls within the 57 decibel "contour", the level of noise which the CAA state leads to the "onset of annoyance" to those living within its boundaries.
But of course, as fervent supporter, you know all of this already.
Great! Bertie Biggles and the Bickering Bollockheads are back to bore us to tears!
The pretend life of blogging doesn't get much better than this, does it!
err,, just the FACTS please,just the facts, it is NOT the Councils plan for 6 million passengers it is Infratil's.
As you quite rightly state Manston operates to an industry standard so if it works elsewhere in the UK why is Thanet so different ?
At what point in my post did I say I was supportive or opposed to any expansion at Manston, I will make my mind up on facts and not on half truths, rumour and innuendo posted on blogs.
4:48...what are you talking about when you state '....and passengers have hung around for hours due to no shows by customs does not bode well.' If there are no customs on duty you merely walk out the blue exit for intra EC arrivals or green/red channel for other arrivals as you would do if they were there. You aren't penned in until customs arrive. Again another example of someone on here who doesn't know what they're talking about.
councillor, your posting at 08:19am. "Sadly this will be used to fuel the paranoia by those opposed to the Airport and to whip up ill informed hysteria in an attempt to stop its further development and progress."
Is this a comment from someone who
doesn't support the airport?
Noise monitoring.I have stipulated that there is nothing wrong with Infratils approach, but pointed out that other expanded or expanding airports have put actual monitoring in place. This is for the benefit of local residents so real measurement of noise levels, to ensure noisy or night flights are duly recorded and fined. Those fines are placed back into effected communities for sound sinulation, vortex protection for your roof, schools etc. This is usually after a protracted period of lobbying and request from residents and councillors alike. If you feel your voters aren't worthy of this, just make this clear to them when going for re-election.
If you want facts, the Kent and Medway local states under policy TP24 "The devlopment of Manston Airport into a regional airport with a capcity of up to 6 million passengers by 2021 will be supported."
I'd say thats a tick in box in the airport favour, wouldn't you? If TDC have not been party to this, i suggest you take this up with KCC.
no half truths, no rumours, just facts.
Its not just Thanet that faces this problem: is expansion of Manston allowed to create jobs at the expense of peace and quiet for many Thanet residents. In the Maidstone area there are plans for the Kent International Gateway road-rail depot.
The developer claims the depot will take thousands of lorries off the roads and create many jobs, but thousands of residents have opposed the plan saying it would lead to more traffic and pollution on their doorsteps.
Why would KCC be against one of the job creation schemes but for the other? East Kent residents should ask this.
If 6m passengers and a regular spattering of rotting fish gunge will drive ECR and fellow numpties from the Eastcliff, then rock on TDC and Infratil!
Anon 10:58. With your I am alright Jack attitude, you may reflect on what would happen to Ramsgate if a lot of people move out? With Margate currently trying a £17 million regeneration to attract visitors, there will be no hope for Ramsgate after all the effort that has already been spent to try and improve it. It will be goodbye to my annual weeks stay in Ramsgate!
Sorry 10:58am. You can't get rid of me that easily!
The airport could ruin Ramsgate. The risk is that any potential the town has will be destroyed by the noise. If the airport does grow can it grow without creating noise pollution over Ramsgate?
One of the most authentic places in the world ruined by a daft plan
lots of people seemingly against, if you can please use ECR's link to Infratils Manston website to lodge your objection directly. The only way to get your voices heard is via the correct channels - your councillor and the manstons website.
I agree that we need to get this matter in context.
Was this an isolated incident (as some contributors have claimed without providing any evidence) or is it the norm? I think we should be told.
As for Harrison not being in favour of Manston I think his voting record speaks for itself. In the debates I've attended he has never voted for anything that the airport was against. And wasn't he a cabinet member of the Council that drew up the Section 106 that allows night flights to take place? How can he now pretend that he isn't in favour of night-flights.
Indeed 5:25 Harrison or Nicholson did not turn up for the latest KIACC meeting.
Duane its you that does not understand customs?
its not suprising that I wasnt at the KIACC meeting as I am not a member of it.
We are still waiting with baited breath for the evidence that the Council and the cabinet that I was a member of voted to allow night flights in the section 106 Agreement, I have a copy in front of me and see no evidence of it allowing night flights, indeed before night flights are even considered Infratil will have to submit to the Council a night flying policy that may or may not be agreed.
Someone said that monitoring doesnt take place, well if there is no monitoring why does the the Airport pay fines when there are breaches of the noise policy and to prove that they do pay fines please attend the public meeting of KIACC next tuesday when some of the money collected from fines will be distributed to local groups as per the 106 Agreement.
I suspect that my position is the same as the vast majority of Thanet residents that is that I want to see a successful Airport but not at any price.
I've got a copy of the Section 106 agreement in front of me as well and it specifically allows night-flights as long as they aren't scheduled. The operator only has to come forward with a "policy" if they want to introduce scheduled night-flights. All cargo flights, and a good number of passenger flights are charters and so, they can fly in and out at night unhindered. Personally, I don't see what difference it makes whether the operator has to produce a policy or not. This is just another worthless piece of paper that won't stop night-flights in a month of Sundays. The Section 106 specifically allows unlimited numbers of night-flights, as long as they pay the pitiful fines (which haven't increased since the day the 106 was drafted). However, why bother paying? The fines weren't collected by the Council the last time MK Airlines subjected us to a barrage of night-flights. I'm afraid Harrison and his chums were directly responsible for this useless document. The restriction in place prior to the 106 was far more stringent (i.e. it banned night flights altogether). No point in trying to deny it Mike. You and your cronies sold us down the river...and for what? Where are the thousands of jobs you promised? Frankly, I'm surprised you have the gall to show your face in Ramsgate after getting it so badly wrong.
TDC = 100% in favour of manston. Harrison, White, Latchford, the feckin lot
They will kill our town stone dead.
idiots like terry painter will help him. how can an estate agent sell a £500k penthouse that is going to be within a noise pollution zone that entitles it to sound proofing and sales blight payments, whilst praising the development of the airport?
its times like these when you forget your own property value problems and hope it drives pr1cks like him out of business
What a grade a tosser
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