Andy Burnham to chair urgent Cobra meeting over RAF Fairford 'terror plot'

You are about to be charged £0.00* *Your gift has been applied Thank you for subscribing! Andy Burnham to chair urgent Cobra meeting over RAF Fairford 'terror plot' It will be the Prime Minister's second emergency meeting since bagging the top job The fearless champion of Britain, its voices and its values. Join the fight for free speech and fearless journalism. By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use, Privacy Policy, and Community Rules. Don't Miss Most Read Andy Burnham will chair an urgent Cobra meeting over the suspected terror plot at RAF Fairford. Five British nationals were arrested after the incident took place in the Gloucestershire village early on Sunday morning. At the time, a Whelford villager called emergency services after she spotted three vans and a gaggle of masked men near the key military base. This afternoon, all five were released on bail but remain under investigation, the head of Counter Terrorism Policing, Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, said. The site has previously been used to launch defensive strikes against Tehran after Sir Keir Starmer gave the green light to the US. The men who were arrested were initially detained on suspicion of explosive offences and later terrorism. Today, the Prime Minister announced in Liverpool that he wanted to acquire the "full picture" on what happened. Mr Burnham said: "I want to thank the police, the Gloucestershire Police, the security services, the emergency services, the public who alerted us, so thank you to everybody for the way that they’ve worked. Andy Burnham confirmed he will hold a Cobra meeting over the suspected terror plot |PA "What I can say is that I will chair a meeting of Cobra later this afternoon just to make sure we have the full picture, the full situation very clearly in our sights and so maybe we’ll say more about that later today," he told LBC. The emergency Cobra meeting is currently underway, Heidi Alexander, the Transport Secretary, said. "My understanding is that the meeting is taking place as we speak," she told Sky News, adding threats to national security were taken "very seriously". The airspace over the military site has been temporarily restricted after the incident. Aircraft are forbidden to fly within the forbidden area unless they acquire explicit police permission. LATEST DEVELOPMENTS: The incident took place at RAF Fairford |PA The restriction applies to private and commercial aircraft, as well as small balloons, kites and parachutes. It will remain in place until October 5. The MP whose constituency covers RAF Fairford, Roz Savage, said her "blood ran cold" at the impact a terror attack could have had on the local village. The Liberal Democrat insisted she had many questions over the incident - and how the potential crisis was averted. Ms Savage said: "Ever since it was first announced six months ago that RAF Fairford was going to be used as the base for US military airstrikes on Iran, I’ve been asking questions of the Government about whether they can assure my residents, my constituents, of their safety. "They had given that assurance, however, I feel that the events of this weekend do cast that into doubt. "It actually makes my blood run cold when I think how close we may have come to disaster this weekend." She further confirmed she would write to the Prime Minister and Defence Secretary about her concerns and establish facts surrounding the incident. "But get those answers we must – to make sure that going into the future lessons have been learned and that my constituents are not put at this kind of risk ever again," Ms Savage reiterated.