York: Anti-terror bollards to be installed in 'vulnerable' city in April

Anti-terror bollards costing £3.5m will be installed in York after councillors were told its narrow streets make it particularly vulnerable to attack.

The barriers, to be installed in April, are designed to stop vehicles driving in some parts of the city centre.

York had an "obvious vulnerability", with many pavement cafes as "ideal targets", counter terrorism advisor Shaun Tunstall told councillors.

The permanent barriers were approved by the council despite spiralling costs.

Councillors previously blamed inflation and the increased price of steel and concrete for the cost of their installation rising to £3.5m since the plans were first agreed in 2018.

Initially with a price tag of half that amount, the barriers will be paid for from future highways budgets.

Mr Tunstall told councillors that installing the devices would be a "good move" against possible terror attacks.

"The terrorist threat is becoming more unpredictable. Before we know it, something will happen," he warned.

"It's something that is needed in York, more so than I've seen in most other cities I've dealt with."

Supt Mark Khan, from North Yorkshire Police, told the meeting that the city's narrow streets made it difficult for people to "jump out of the way or escape from a vehicle".

He said: "We have at times many people in a very small area, so that would make an attack far more successful for someone who would want to carry it out."

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, earlier in the meeting, disability rights campaigner Flick Williams argued the anti-terror measures were not proportionate,

She said: "We, the taxpayers, don't even get to properly interrogate these decisions because it is shrouded in secrecy, hidden behind walls of intelligence and national security obfuscation."

But City of York Council leader Keith Aspden said: "It has become a fact of life that terrorists can strike at any time and any place without warning.

"Not having proactive measures in place is an unacceptable risk".

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