I am certainly going on too much about this, but it is idiocy of a grand scale and it has really got me worked up. I was through Dublin airport again today. The security checks were pretty quick, but I had had enough when they sent my belt and watch to be x-rayed. So I got into a discussion with one of the security staff about when they were going to stop this farce (it was a discussion as we both were calm and voices were not raised).

I asked why they were x-raying my belt after it had set off the metal detector (in any other airport they just look behind the buckle to make sure there is nothing there). The answer I got was that it was to look for plastic explosives. But why then were they using the metal detectors to look for semtex, when the man admitted that the metal detector will not find them? Surely if they are that worried they should be x-raying all belts rather than the ones that fail to go through the metal detector?

Essentially I put it to the guy that I wasn’t complaining about the queues for the security checks (it wouldn’t be fair, I am travelling at a time when there is little problem). My problems with what they are doing is that:

• All these extra checks are unnecessary as they don’t actually do anything for security (I saw a pair of stillettos get x-rayed today, how much explosive could you hide in them?)
• And no other airport I have been through in the last 4 years since September 11th (and there have been a lot across the US and Europe) is doing these checks

What it all boils down to is theatre. Having been embarrassed, Dublin Airport Authority are trying to be seen to be doing something. And we are suffering the consequences and the indignity of it. Rather than continue harping on about it here I am going to contact the DAA and see what they have to say for themselves.

Ironically my big travel delay was not in Dublin but Heathrow. British Midland had some technical problem and it took them longer to get our bags from the plane to the terminal than it did to get us from Dublin to London. We were waiting over an hour. So I was full of joy when I made it to the hotel.

The free chocolate covered strawberries the hotel staff gave me have considerably improved my humour though