Martyn’s Law: Anti-terror rules to be introduced after years of delay

Legislation nicknamed Martyn’s law in memory of a victim of the Manchester Arena bombing is to be introduced to ensure stronger protections against terrorism in public places. Martyn Hett, 29, was one of 22 people killed in the attack at the end of an Ariana Grande concert on 22 May 2017. His mother, Figen Murray, has campaigned for new measures.

The government said the UK-wide law would require venues and local authorities to draw up preventive action plans against terror attacks. Draft legislation will be published in the early spring.

The Home Office said: “The new duty will require venues to take steps to improve public safety, with measures dependent on the size of the venue and the activity taking place. Recent attacks demonstrate that terrorists may choose to target a broad range of locations. Martyn’s law will ensure that security preparedness is delivered consistently across the UK, ensuring better protection of the public.”

The plans have been developed after public consultation and engagement across industry, charities, local authorities, security experts, and with survivors. Seventy percent of people who responded to the consultation agreed that officials responsible for publicly accessible locations should take measures to protect the public from potential attacks.

Martyn’s law will follow a tiered model linked to activity that takes place at a location and its capacity, to prevent undue burden on businesses. A standard tier will apply to locations with a maximum capacity of over 100, and an enhanced tier will focus on high-capacity locations in recognition of the potential consequences of an attack.

To find out more or to answer any questions you may have the UK government has provided a Q&A factsheet here: https://homeofficemedia.blog.gov.uk/2022/12/19/martyns-law-factsheet/.

Striking the right balance

The tragedies at public venues over the past few years reaffirm the very real need for sites to assess their security solutions to ensure they’re robust enough to keep visitors and staff safe. Priavo cover all facets of event security and are happy to aid you in assessing the risks your venues face. Please get in touch if we can help with the implementation of technical and physical security measures.

Find out more at https://priavosecurity.com/corporate/protective-security/event-security/.