Policy background
- In 2017, 22 victims lost their lives to a terror attack at the Manchester Arena.
- In June 2021 the Manchester Arena Inquiry chair published Volume One of his report which criticised ‘the lack of a duty to identify and mitigate the risk of terrorism[…] to provide adequate protection to the public’, and issued monitored recommendation 4 which called for legislation to be introduced to improve the safety and security of public venues. This was in addition to the Prevention of Future Deaths Report from the London Bridge and Borough Market Inquests, which also recommended the introduction of legislation to clearly set out the duties of owners and public authorities regarding protective security and a 2017 Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) recommendation to do the same as part of a report considering the five 2017 attacks. The introduction of this Act is part of the Government’s response to these reports.
- Since the start of 2017, security agencies and law enforcement have disrupted 39 late-stage plots and there have been 15 domestic terror attacks (including the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing) These terrorist attacks have sadly demonstrated that the public may be targeted at a broad range of public venues and spaces.
- The threat to the UK from terrorism is currently SUBSTANTIAL, meaning an attack is likely. The 2023 CONTEST strategy summarised the current terrorist threat facing the UK as ‘enduring and evolving’, with a domestic threat which ‘is less predictable and harder to detect and investigate’.
- Furthermore, terrorist attackers have targeted a wide range of people and places in recent years. It is not possible to predict where in the UK an attack might happen, or the type of buildings or events that could be impacted – either directly (as the target of an attack) or indirectly (by being located near to the target of an attack).
- Therefore, the Government believes a broad range of premises and events must improve their protective security and organisational preparedness. This will be achieved by providing for a legal requirement that those responsible for certain premises and events consider the vulnerability of their premises or event to an attack and how they would respond to an attack.
- The Act’s proposals have been developed following extensive engagement with security partners, the police, businesses, victims’ groups, and parliamentarians.
- In July 2021 the previous Government held an 18-week consultation on making the public safer at publicly accessible locations. 70% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that those responsible for publicly accessible locations should take appropriate and proportionate measures to protect the public from terrorist attacks. 70% of respondents also agreed that responsible venues and organisations should prepare their staff to respond appropriately in the event of a terrorist attack.
- In May 2023, the previous Government published a draft Act which underwent pre-legislative scrutiny conducted by the Home Affairs Select Committee. The Committee subsequently published their pre-legislative scrutiny report, on 27 July 2023.
- In February 2024 the previous Government conducted a consultation specifically on the Act’s proposals for standard duty premises. The Government has published a summary of the results to support scrutiny.
- The Government has reflected on commentary on the Act to date and has made several changes since its publication in draft in May 2023, with the intention of ensuring a better balance between protecting national security and the burden on businesses and other organisations.
- The requirements for standard duty premises have been refined, the Government has removed the requirements for the completion of a mandatory Standard Terrorism Evaluation form – in recognition that a one size fits all approach is not appropriate and could be onerous.
- As there is no longer a requirement for generic training, those in scope will be required to ensure that the relevant individuals at premises and events should be trained, or otherwise educated, to effectively implement the procedures and measures.
- Furthermore, the ‘reasonably practicable’ test has been extended to the standard duty premises requirements, which will allow organisations to tailor the implementation of their procedures to their specific circumstances.
- The Government has also increased the threshold for bringing premises into scope as qualifying premises. Previously, premises with capacity for 100 – 799 people would have been in scope and so subject to the Act’s requirements. Now, only premises that reasonably accommodate 200 or more individuals will be qualifying premises and, where they only accommodate fewer than 800, they will be standard duty premises.
