Public security

Could British invention foil terror bombs?

Scientists at Britain's Loughborough University, in the East Midlands, believe they have invented the answer: an explosive residue detector that uses cutting-edge laser technology.

The equipment in question, dubbed the ExDetect, is neither discreet, quiet, nor blessed with any great aesthetic appeal - but, according to Prof John Tyrer, it is non-intrusive and could be just what is needed to save lives.

"I'm sorry to say, but the Brussels attack, this would have instantly sorted out the terrorists before they came into the terminal, and similarly the concert in Paris," he says.

"If it had been on the doors there, it would have stopped people getting in."

Inside a high-security laboratory in a corner of East Midlands Airport, Prof Tyrer's team shows me how it works.

First, a microscopic amount of Semtex 1A high explosive is dabbed onto a T-shirt.

To the naked eye, it is almost invisible - but from a large, red, metal box mounted on a portable steel trolley an ultra-violet laser beam flickers on to the white cotton surface of the garment.