243: Duty to protect against terrorism by owners of premises visited by the public – Martyn’s Law

Shops, restaurants, concert venues, hospitals, schools, hotels and more will soon be caught by a new piece of legislation designed to keep the general public more secure when visiting such premises.

The recently published Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Draft Bill will ensure people know what to do in the event of a terrorist attack at public premises in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Better protection will be delivered through enhanced security systems, staff training, and clearer processes, with responsibilities being placed on owners of premises and event organisers to comply.

The Protect Duty is also known as ‘Martyn’s Law’ in tribute to Martyn Hett, who was killed in the Manchester Arena terrorist attack in 2017. The draft Bill is potentially exceptionally wide-ranging and may apply to approximately 300,000 different premises across the UK.

Qualifying public premises, with a capacity of 100 or more, will be those used as:

• shops;
• food and drink sales;
• nightclubs;
• entertainment activities;
• sports grounds;
• leisure or recreation activities;
• libraries, museums and galleries;
• exhibition centres;
• visitor attractions;
• hotels;
• places of worship;
• health care;
• bus stations and railway stations;
• aerodromes;
• childcare;
• education; and
• public authorities.

However, note that the new duties will not apply to offices or residential properties.

Qualifying public premises are divided into two tiers: all public premises captured by the legislation are ‘standard duty premises’, and those with a public capacity of 800 people or more are ‘enhanced duty premises’. The following duties will apply:

Standard duty premises with a capacity of over 100 (including shops, bars, restaurants)

• Duty holders will be required to undertake simple yet effective activities to improve protective security and preparedness;
• Steps could include completion of free training, awareness raising so that staff know what processes to follow, cascading of information to staff and completion of preparedness plans; and
• Standard terrorism evaluations will be carried out annually and every time a material change is made to the property.

Enhanced duty premises with a capacity of over 800 people (including music venues, theatres, large shops)

• Additional requirements will be placed on high-capacity locations in recognition of the potential catastrophic consequences of a successful attack;
• A risk assessment and security plan, considered to a ‘reasonably practicable’ standard, will be required;
• This will allow duty holders to assess the balance of risk reduction against the time, money and effort required to achieve a successful level of security preparedness. This could result in physical security measures like CCTV.

Enforcement

A new inspection, enforcement and penalty regime would also be put in place, including creating a new regulator with whom qualifying premises would need to be registered and qualifying events notified.

Conclusion

The draft Bill will now be scrutinised by Parliament and amendments made to strike the right balance between public protection and proportionality. The Bill is likely to be made law by the end of 2024.

The cost to premises owners is likely to be high; therefore, businesses should consider to what extent their premises or events are captured by the legislation and prepare for the likely costs associated with compliance.