MEPs vote to ditch liquids in hand luggage ban

The European Parliament has passed a resolution to review restrictions on liquids being taken on board aircraft cross-cutting the continent.

The prohibition on liquids and gels above 100ml in volume being taken in hand luggage was introduced after last year's plot, discovered by British security services, to detonate explosives on transatlantic jets.

Current regulations could be "disproportionate" to the level of security threat, charged the MPs who brought forward the resolution to scrap the ban.

"Security is vital, but public cooperation with inconvenient regulations will only be guaranteed if they are shown to be necessary," noted Liberal Democrat MEP Baronness Ludford.

But the Commission responded by observing that until better technology was developed for screening bottles to verify whether their contents were dangerous, existing restrictions constituted vital precautionary measures.

Earlier this summer, Newcastle Airport urged passengers to take note of security restrictions, revealing that liquid items worth an estimated £11,000 were confiscated in the average week during 'high season' at the travel hub.