Well, as we reported yesterday, Gary Glitter should have arrived back in Britain at 7.15 this morning, after being deported from Vietnam, following his release from prison where he served just under three years for child molestation. However, things haven't quite gone to plan, and he's still in Bangkok, where he was due to change planes and fly back to London Heathrow.
Head Of The Immigration Police at Bangkok Airport, Major General Pongdej Chaiprawaj said: "He claimed to have tinnitus in his ears and declined to board the flight to London". However, he added that Glitter had been deemed "undesirable" by Thai authorities and would not be allowed to enter the country. He continued: "He is banned from entering because he was jailed and he could pose a threat to domestic morality. Officials concerned are working through the process of putting him on the plane to take him out of the country, but if he continues to refuse to leave then he will be confined in the [transit] area temporarily before being taken into a detention centre".
Although he had managed to avoid the flanks of British journalists awaiting him at the airport, at least twelve reporters had been on his flight from Vietnam to Thailand, with the prospect of more on his five-hour flight to London. Glitter later collapsed, complaining of heart problems and demanding hospital treatment, by which time the reporters had checked in their luggage, requiring them to take the onward flight.
When Glitter does return to the UK, which will be Thursday at the earliest, he may not be able to travel abroad again, as it had originally been suggested he would. Home Secretary Jacqui Smith revealed this morning that the government is to tighten rules of travel for sex offenders, potentially blocking them from leaving the country for up to five years and even revoking their passports. Current rules only block international travel for six months. In a statement, she said: "The UK has a rigorous system in place for managing child sex offenders which is among the toughest in the world. The changes I'm announcing today will strengthen that even further".