Olympic Park biometric security plans still out to tender

Hi-tech security systems will not be in place on the London Olympics until this summer at the earliest.

Plans to introduce the latest face recognition and fingerprint technology controlling entry to the 2012 site are still out to tender.

Thousands of construction workers are already on the job and work has just got underway on the phased building of a "ring of steel" fence around the Olympic Park.

The timing of the security contracts has worried Olympic observers. One said: "I'm sure the plan was to have the hi-tech access control in place before the workforce grew to this size.

"There was a lot of talk about the latest technology, but at the moment it's little more than checking a few documents and a gang of security guards patrolling the site."

An Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) spokesman confirmed that the access control contract - including the biometric technology for face and handprint recognition - was still being procured with a contract award due in spring before implementation this summer.

Construction workers are currently being checked with an interim automated system, which checks CSCS accreditation and immigration status with the UK Border Agency.

A contract to separately screen and search people and vehicles is currently out to tender and will be operational by the summer.

An ODA spokesman said: "We are phasing in robust plans to ensure the safety and security of both Olympic Park workers and people living in the area."

Some of the security measures installed during the construction phase could also be retained to protect athletes once the Games get underway.

Contracts for CCTV monitoring and intruder detection along the perimeter fences will be awarded this spring.

Some 136 illegal construction workers were arrested on the Olympic site between April and December 2008, according to figures obtained by the Conservative Party. Of these, 16 have been prosecuted, 11 removed from the UK, 19 granted leave to remain and 90 were awaiting a decision or awaiting travel documents before leaving the UK.