Following the 2017 Manchester Arena attack, the Government introduced the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill. Known as ‘Martyn’s Law’, it is named after one of the victims of the bombing.
The bill seeks to improve protective security and organisational preparedness across the UK by mandating, for the first time, that those responsible for certain premises and events must consider the terrorism risk and how they would respond to an attack.
Security Minister Tom Tugendhat commented: “The current threat picture is complex, evolving, and enduring, and often hard to predict, with terrorists choosing to attack a broad range of locations. Martyn’s Law will ensure premises in the UK are better prepared for and protected from, a terrorist attack.”
The first draft of Martyn’s Law was published in May 2023 and legislators are currently consulting (see below) organisations who will be affected by proposed changes.
Launched on 5 February 2024, the Standard Tier Consultation is asking for the views of smaller premises, those with a capacity of 100–799 individuals, which would fall into the standard tier. Those who will be affected have been invited to submit their views online.
In total, it is estimated that 278,880 premises fall into the standard tier. These are mostly retail and hospitality (65%), places of worship (16%) and schools (11%).
Revisions of the draft legislation require standard tier premises to:
There is now no requirement to complete a specified form (the ‘Standard Terrorism Evaluation’) for standard tier premises or ensure that people working at the premises are given any specific training, despite the inclusion of these measures in the original draft of the Bill.
The standard tier has an estimated total cost of between £387m and £1.63bn with a central estimate of £860m over the full appraisal period. The Government has stated that for an individual site, it is estimated to cost between £160 and £525 per year, with a central estimate of £310 per year. These costs will be largely driven by the time taken to communicate changes to staff.
Key questions asked cover cost, necessity for the legislation, and the training burden.
The consultation opened on 5 February and will run for six weeks. It will close on 18 March 2024.
Following the conclusion of the consultation, the Government has said they will introduce the bill to Parliament as soon as the Parliamentary timetable allows.
If you want to know more, get in touch:
Natalie Larnder, Head of Market Affairs
Kari Hansen, Partner
David Scott, Partner
Ivor Long, Partner
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