Cornwall is busy readying itself to be the centre of the free world as police officers comb the coast with metal detectors and the US Air Force drop off Joe Biden’s helicopter ahead of the G7 summit.
The summit, which begins on Friday in Carbis Bay, will last for three days and see the world’s seven largest advanced economies come together to discuss big topics.
Leaders from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the United States will come together in Cornwall because the region is seen as central to the UK’s green technology sector.
The summit is believed to be the largest police operation Devon and Cornwall Police has ever seen and officers from as far as Scotland are being deployed to help.
Temporary villages in fields are being erected to accomodate the sheer volume of security.
And a luxury cruise liner which will be used to accommodate more than 1,000 officers has arrived in Falmouth, after furious locals slammed police for hiring out the 1990s vessel.
More than 6,500 police from forces across the UK are set to be deployed across the summit, and around one sixth of them will spend their off-duty time on the massive 202m long MS Silja Europa.
Yesterday a huge US Air Force Boeing C-17 Globemaster III plane was seen dropping Joe Biden’s helicopter (pictured) at Royal Navy airbase Culdrose near Helston
Police officers search the beach with metal detectors at Carbis Bay, Cornwall, ahead of the G7 summit
The huge cruise ship Silja Europa, which has been hired to accommodate many of the 6,500 police officers who will be policing the G7 Summit in Cornwall, has docked in Falmouth as the Cornish town prepares to welcome world leaders
More than 6,500 officers from forces across the UK are set to be deployed across the summit, and hundreds of police will spend their off-duty time on the massive 202m long MS Silja Europa
The 14-deck vessel, which was built in Germany in 1993 and can reach speeds of 21 knots, can carry more than 3,000 passengers with hundreds of cocktail-tray waiters, maids and other crew to look after their every need
The summit is believed to be the largest police operation Devon and Cornwall Police has ever seen and officers from as far as Scotland are being deployed to help
The 14-deck vessel was built in Germany in 1993 and comes with a grill house, moonlight disco, pools and a spa and can reach speeds of 21 knots. It can carry more than 3,000 passengers, with hundreds of cocktail-tray waiters, maids and other crew to look after their every need.
It is usually sent on cruises between Helsinki and Tallinn, and was described by its operator Estonian shipping company Tallink as ‘the biggest and most beautiful cruise ship on the Baltic’.
Devon and Cornwall Police said the liner has been hired for 10 days and used by officers for accommodation, catering and ‘other essential facilities’. Whoever gets one of the executive suites will even have their own sauna.
However, cruise liners have come under fire from climate change activists for their role in polluting the world and causing carbon emission damage on a grand scale – just one of the issues on the cards for the G7 leaders.
The Prime Minister (pictured getting his second jab last week) will call on world leaders to agree a plan to end the pandemic by ensuring every person has access to a jab within the next 18 months
And disgruntled locals have slammed the force for chartering the vessel ‘for what will be little more than an ego trip for BoJo where Devon and Cornwall council taxpayers will ultimately foot the bill’.
Yesterday a huge US Air Force Boeing C-17 Globemaster III plane was seen dropping Joe Biden’s helicopter at Royal Navy airbase Culdrose near Helston.
Pictures show the massive four-engine aircraft landing and dropping off a khaki and white helicopter with ‘United States of America’ written on it.
A police spokesperson for G7 planning said: ‘We will be deploying over 6,500 officers and staff to this event and we are supporting a vast range of local businesses and suppliers as part of our extensive logistical arrangements.
‘This includes using over 4,000 rooms at almost 200 venues across Devon and Cornwall which will support local communities and accommodate police officers and staff deployed from across the UK.
‘In order to secure further essential capacity, we reviewed a number of options and recently agreed to hire the MS Silja Europa, operated by Tallink; taking into account impacts to the environment, community, the operational needs, and those of our officers and staff.
‘The vessel will remain static, moored in Falmouth, used for a 10-day period, with only the accommodation, catering and other essential facilities in use.
‘We are working closely with the vessel owners, ports authorities and health partners to ensure the safe use of this accommodation. Those staying onboard will strictly follow all the applicable Covid safety guidelines, enhanced by daily testing – consistent with staff staying at all other accommodation sites across the force area.’
The Silja Europa has seven restaurants and coffee shops, a nightclub, live music venue and full spa and beauty salon. But police insist most facilities will be closed, with only the restaurants available to officers, and the showtime theatre may be used but only for ‘daily police briefings’.
Boris Johnson will use the G7 summit to secure a global pledge to vaccinate the world’s population against Covid-19 by the end of 2022.
The Prime Minister will call on world leaders to agree a plan to end the pandemic by ensuring every person has access to a jab within the next 18 months.
He hailed the summit, which will be held in Cornwall, as ‘historic’. The G7 starts on Friday, when the leaders will gather for a face-to-face meeting.
Mr Johnson said the premiers – which include United States President Joe Biden on his first foreign visit since taking office – must use the event to ‘rise to the greatest challenge’ since the war.