Transport Secretary Philip Hammond has hinted that the ban on carrying liquids in hand luggage is to be eased, it has been reported.
Mr Hammond told The Sunday Times that the restrictions affecting air passengers could be phased out with the first moves coming as early as next April.
The ban has proved unpopular with passengers and airline operators since it was introduced in 2006 following a failed plot to blow up transatlantic airplanes.
Mr Hammond told the paper that he sympathised with parents with young children who had to taste jars of baby food and drink to prove they were safe.
He said: "I have seen mothers tasting it, and doesn't it taste foul?"
He added: "The good news is that by 2013 the ban on mush will have ended."
Mr Hammond told the paper that he planned to make the system more flexible.
Earlier this year EU signalled that the laws would continue until 2013 when mass-screening technology to detect explosives in fluids is perfected.
The ban on liquids came into force in Europe after British police uncovered an al Qaida plot to blow up transatlantic airliners bound for North America using bombs made from liquid explosives.
The security rules have led to scenes of frustration at airport security desks when passengers have been forced to throw away drinks containers, bottles of perfume and tubes of sun cream before boarding planes.
