London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 18, 2025

Manchester Airport cannot take shortcuts on security - Shapps

Manchester Airport cannot take shortcuts on security - Shapps

The government cannot take "shortcuts on security" to boost staff numbers at Manchester Airport, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has said.

The airport has been beset with long passenger delays since mid-March and said it was "facing staff shortages and recruitment challenges".

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has called for the government to speed up the vetting process for new staff.

Mr Shapps said officials would not "cut corners" when it came to safety.

He said he had warned the aviation sector to "be careful" about cutting jobs during the coronavirus pandemic as demand for travel would "come back again, and that's what's happening".

Manchester Airport Group (MAG) said more than half of the candidates it had offered jobs to found employment elsewhere before the vetting process was completed.

Passengers have faced long delays waiting for their bags on arrival


When asked whether security checks for new recruits could be completed faster, Mr Shapps said: "We can't take shortcuts on security and passengers wouldn't want us to.
"Vetting and checking, particularly for people who are going airside, is absolutely critical. We do need to make sure that work is carried out properly.

"I know that the Home Office are expediting it as much as possible but no-one wants us to cut corners when it comes to their safety and security."

Mr Burnham has warned that the disruption would continue "for the next two months".

Travellers at the airport, which is owned by Greater Manchester's 10 councils and an investment firm, have faced long queues for check-in and security.

The problems first surfaced in mid-March when passengers were left waiting for hours, with some forced to queue in the car park while others missed flights

MAG has apologised and said the industry was "facing staff shortages and recruitment challenges". On Tuesday, its managing director Karen Smart stepped down.

Earlier, baggage handling firm Swissport apologised to passengers who have faced delays when collecting luggage.

The airport is warning passengers to expect waits of up to 90 minutes at security.

Andy Burnham has met with airport bosses to discuss the "concerning" current situation


Charlie Cornish, MAG chief executive, has urged travellers to arrive three hours before their flight to avoid missing it.

"The simple fact is that we don't currently have the number of staff we need to provide the level of service that our passengers deserve," he said.

"Despite our efforts since last autumn, the tight labour market around the airport has meant we have just not been able to hire people quickly enough.

"While we still expect most passengers to get through in less than 30-40 minutes, there will be times over the next few months when waiting times will rise to between 60 and 90 minutes."

However, the airport does expect about 250 new security staff to begin work by early next month.

Mr Cornish added that he "cannot apologise enough for the disruption people have faced".

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Massive Strikes in France Pressure Macron and New PM on Austerity Proposals
Trump Seeks Supreme Court Permission to Remove Fed Governor Lisa Cook
Hillary Clinton’s Reckless Rhetoric Fuels Division After Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
NASDAQ Rises to Record as Intel Soars More Than 20%, Nvidia Gains 3%
Nvidia’s $5 Billion Bet on Intel Reshapes AI Hardware Landscape
Trump and Starmer Clash Over UK Recognition of Palestinian State Amid State Visit
Trump’s Quip on Biden and Google Lawsuit Revives Debate Over Antitrust Legacy
Macron and his wife to provide 'scientific photographic evidence' that she is a real woman
US Tech Giants Pledge Billions to UK AI Infrastructure Following Starmer's Call
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
DeepMind and OpenAI Achieve Gold at ‘Coding Olympics’ in AI Milestone
SEC Allows Public Companies to Block Investors from Class-Action Lawsuits
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Federal Reserve Cuts Rates by Quarter Point and Signals More to Come
Effective and Impressive Generation Z Protest: Images from the Riots in Nepal
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Trump: Cancel quarterly company reports and settle for reporting once every six months
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
US Launches New Pilot Program to Accelerate eVTOL Air Taxi Deployment
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Hong Kong Industry Group Calls for HK$20 Billion Support Fund to Ease Property Market Stress
Joe Biden’s Post-Presidency Speaking Fees Face Weak Demand amid Corporate Reluctance
Charlie Kirk's murder will break the left's hateful cancel tactics
Kash Patel erupts at ‘buffoon’ Sen. Adam Schiff over Russiagate: ‘You are the biggest fraud’
Homeland Security says Emmy speech ‘fanning the flames of hatred’ after Einbinder’s ‘F— ICE’ remark
Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Assassin Tyler Robinson Faces Death Penalty as Charges Formally Announced
Actor, director, environmentalist Robert Redford dies at 89
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
JD Vance Says There Is “No Unity” with Those Who Celebrate Charlie Kirk’s Killing, and he is right!
Trump sues the 'New York Times' for an astronomical sum of 15 billion dollars
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
×