Home Office Minister John Denham has insisted the government had overhauled security measures and the UK was now in a better state to cope with the threat of any attack.

But the MPs said that ambulance and fire crews lacked both the equipment and the training to cope with a chemical, biological or nuclear attack.

They also said that the emergency services and military radios were incompatible and so councils calling in the army had to ask them to bring their mobile phones.