Agenda item

Members received an information report on the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) draft Bill “Martyn’s Law” which had been published in draft form by the Government to allow for pre-legislative scrutiny of the legislation by the Home Affairs Select Committee.

The report was prepared in order to provide Members with information on the provisions contained in the draft bill and how these may impact and interact with the Council’s role as a licensing authority under the Licensing Act 2003.

The Principal Officer (Licensing), WRS drew Members’ attention to the Service / Operational Implications, as detailed page 70 of the main agenda report.

On 22^nd May 2017, twenty-two people were killed in a terror attack at the end of a concert taking place at the Manchester Arena. In addition to those who lost their lives, hundreds of others were injured.

            In October 2019 the Home Secretary established the Manchester Arena Inquiry, a statutory public inquiry set up to investigate the deaths of the victims of the attack.

            As well as establishing the public inquiry, in its 2019 manifesto the Government made a commitment to improve the safety and security of public venues. Further to that manifesto commitment, the Government launched a public consultation in February 2021 on proposals to bring in legislation to implement a “Protect Duty” to ensure that those responsible for publicly accessible locations were ready and prepared to take appropriate action, were a terrorist attack to happen.

The “Protect Duty” had also become widely known as “Martyn’s Law” in tribute to Martyn Hett who lost his life in the Manchester Arena attack.

Alongside its consultation response document, the Government published a draft version of the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill. At the same time, the Government also wrote to the Home Affairs Select Committee to invite the Committee to conduct pre-legislative scrutiny of the draft legislation. A copy of the draft bill was attached at Appendix 1 to the report.

The Principal Officer (Licensing), WRS, further informed Members that since the Licensing Committee agenda had been published, the Home Affairs Select Committee had responded and that their draft recommendations were available to view on the Governments website.

Qualifying public premises may be located within other premises, such as a retail store within a shopping centre. The requirements would not apply to premises (or parts thereof) that were used as private dwellings or offices.

            Qualifying public premises may be either standard duty premises or enhanced duty premises. Enhanced duty premises were those with a public capacity of 800 individuals or more. Standard duty premises were those with a capacity of 100 to 799 individuals. The Bill allowed for provision to be made for some premises to be treated as standard duty premises when they would otherwise be enhanced duty premises, and vice versa.

Members were further informed that there was currently no indication as to who would be ‘The Regulator.’  The regulator would primarily provide a guidance function for businesses; and also have the ability to impose a range of civil sanctions which would be utilised to address non-compliance.

It was unclear at this stage who the Secretary of State intended to specify as the regulator under the draft legislation. This could be existing public bodies such as local authorities or the Health and Safety Executive. Alternatively, an entirely new public body could be created to act as the regulator. The regulator would need to be identified before the Bill was presented to Parliament.

As detailed in paragraph 3.36, whether or not Local Authorities (LA’s) were ultimately specified as the regulator, there would be implications for the Council when the legislation was brought into force.

Therefore, the future progress of the draft legislation would need to be followed closely by officers to ensure that the Council could publicise and signpost relevant guidance and information to those who would be affected by the duties that the draft legislation would eventually impose.

            The Council may also need to revise its Statement of Licensing Policy published under the Licensing Act 2003 in light of the implementation of the legislation.

            The Principal Officer (Licensing), WRS reassured the Committee that further reports would be presented to the Licensing Committee in due course as the process for enacting the draft legislation progressed.

The police website “ProtectUK” provided some guidance for premises to follow now in order to reduce the risk of a terrorist attack. Which included guidance on staff training, how staff should respond in evacuating premises and managing the situation.

Proportionality was important with clear expectations, duties and proportionate responses expected of small businesses and cost implications.

In response to questions from Members, the Principal Officer (Licensing), WRS clarified the following: -

·         Premises with a capacity of less than 100 would be out of scope.

·         Funding for local village halls etc. – the Local Government Association (LGA) had responded to the draft Bill and had stated that the Government must now ensure that funding was made available to respond to the significant resource and capacity requirements needed to successfully implement “Martyn’s Law”.

·         Places of worship had been taken out of the standard / enhanced duty premises scope.

·         LA’s would be regulated under this Bill, as would any LA organised public events. LA’s would have duties to enact upon.

·         The Council’s Facilities and Health & Safety teams for all six Worcestershire authorities would need to think ahead for any potential risks. Anyone responsible for a publicly accessible building should be aware and more thought and risk assessments should be put in place by looking at potential risks.

The Council’s Legal Advisor confirmed that the Council Chamber, Redditch Borough Council and the Parkside Hall, Bromsgrove District Council could both facilitate 200 people.

The Principal Officer (Licensing), WRS, responded to further questions from Members in respect of local sporting events and car boot sales and Temporary Event Notices (TENs), whereby the number of people attending could significantly vary on the day. The Principal Officer (Licensing), WRS stated that the Home Affairs Select Committee had asked for further clarification on Standard and Enhanced duty premises.

With regards to TENs, if the Bill were in place or before the Bill was in place, officers would look if a good level of guidance was available in order to provide information or signpost applicants to guidance ahead of the Bill being introduced.

RESOLVED that the Information Report – Terrorism ({Protection of Premises) draft Bill – “Martyn’s Law” be noted.