Daniel Whitmarsh, Communication and Consultation Manager for Sevenoaks District Council, has denied claims that council staff have been preparing to respond in the event of a terrorist attack on the Olympic Torch Relay on Friday.
He says:
"There is absolutely no truth in the story..." and "Tomorrow we will be stewarding the event and as a matter of course our staff and 200 volunteers will wearing high vis clothing."
While the council have sent two messages asking for the original article to be removed we do not believe in censorship but in open discussion of the facts.
We are not aware of any threat to Sevenoaks or the Olympic Torch Relay and have no reason to believe there is anything for people to worry about.
However, we received information from a reliable source so either planning for a potential terror threat was an element of preparations for Friday or staff were inadvertently lead to believe that it was.
Due to the secretive nature of any discussions about such threats the public are always the last to know and potential public panic is always used as an excuse to keep things secret. The problem with this is that it then becomes impossible for the public to trust the word of those in authority and even means their statements will be questioned even when they are telling the truth.
Regardsless, Sevenoaks Newswire will be attending the Olympic Torch Relay in Sevenoaks tomorrow.
