G7 summit – Secret Service agents ‘storm’ Cornwall with helicopters and landing craft ahead of Joe Biden’s UK visit
US Secret Service agents stormed Carbis Bay today ahead of Joe Biden's arrival to the G7 summit in Cornwall this weekend.
President Biden's security entourage will be staying in hired camper vans because there is simply not enough accommodation to house them.
More than 50 luxury cars and 400 Secret Service agents touched down at St Mawgan airbase near Newquay ahead of Biden's arrival on Wednesday.
Video footage emerged of two Sea King and three Osprey helicopters soaring above Cornwall and Devon as they did test runs of President Biden's route from the airbase to Tragenna Castle Resort in St Ives.
On top this, some 1,000 police will be staying on a cruise liner at Falmouth harbour and in camper vans parked at the RAF base in Newquay.
A run of good weather and the easing of lockdown restrictions has meant every hotel and B&B within a 30-mile radius of the summit has been booked by holiday-goers.
Images have surfaced of caravans clogging the A30 on Monday, leaving much of the road along the Devon-Cornwall border paralysed by traffic.
The US recreational vans – some the size of an articulated lorry – can sleep up to eight people and come equipped with satellite TV and other homely comforts.
The company hiring them out – some at a rate of a whopping £2,500 a week – has barred the Secret Service from driving them and provided their own chauffeurs.
Leaders from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the US are meeting in Cornwall for the annual G7 summit this Friday and are expected to discuss Covid vaccines donations to developing countries and a 15 per cent global tax rate.
The vehicles are expected to be driven to the Tregenna Hotel where President Biden will be staying for three days.
What is the G7 Summit?
Also known as the Group of Seven, these countries are seven of the largest economies of the world.
Together, they represent more than 62 per cent of the global net wealth ($280trillion).
The group was founded in the early 1970s as the seven countries discussed concerns about the collapse of the oil industry.
Since then, 43 summits have been held across the globe as members discuss everything from the environment to the economy.
The group was previously known as the G8 and counted Russia among its members, but Russia has been excluded since annexing the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine in early 2014.
US pilots were also spotted practice landing a chopper – known as Marine One when the US President is on board – on Tregenna Castle golf course on Monday evening.
Others choppers were seen tracing the route Air Force One will take when it arrives at Newquay Airport later this week.
Three US Marine Osprey aircraft were also seen over hoovering over Haldon Hills near Exeter then Carlyon Bay and finally at Tregenna Castle yesterday evening.
The aircraft were brought over by US Air Force's Boeing C-17 Globemaster III and offloaded at the Royal Navy airbase Culdrose, near Helston, on Sunday.
As part of a security ramp-up ahead of Friday's meeting, police have begun closing down access to 30 bridges over the A30 – one the main road leading into and through Cornwall.
A barrage of steel fences have been planted around Tregenna Castle as many roads and footpaths remain shut for up to 21 days.
One notice reads: "It is necessary to mitigate the danger to the public or damage to the highway (from incidents) that may arise from the hosting of an event taking place in Carbis Bay."
Residents living near the meeting venue will have to show two forms of ID to be allowed past check points.
Devon and Cornwall Police are expecting protests over weekend from groups like Extinction Rebellion.
More than 6,500 police from forces across the UK are set to be deployed across the summit.
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."
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