Police have arrested a man at Gatwick Airport under the Terrorism Act

Police have arrested a man from Hertfordshire on suspicion of planning a terrorist attack, Scotland Yard has confirmed.

The man was stopped under Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act after disembarking a flight from Iraq and arrested under Section 5 after questioning, according to the Evening Standard. Section 5 reads as follows, and carries a potential sentence of life imprisonment if the individual in question is convicted:

A person commits an offence if, with the intention of— (a) committing acts of terrorism, or (b) assisting another to commit such acts, he engages in any conduct in preparation for giving effect to his intention.

The paper reports that the man, who is 44 years of age, was arrested on Thursday and remains in custody in central London. A statement from the Metropolitan Police said: "As a result of enquiries during the stop a decision was made to arrest the man under section five of the Terrorism Act - suspicion of preparation of terrorist acts. "The man was arrested under PACE and taken to a central London police station where he remains in custody." More to follow...