Martyn’s Law: A Duty to Protect

A first draft of legislation designed to protect people in publicly accessible locations was recently presented to Parliament.

Protect Duty, also known as Martyn’s Law, was conceived following the tragic incident in Manchester Arena on May 27th 2017, where 22 people were murdered and hundreds injured at a music event. A public enquiry was established to investigate the incident and led to the creation of a new statutory duty to ensure the protection of people in public spaces.

Martyn’s Law, once passed, will give regulators the power to inspect and enforce legislative breaches in ‘standard duty premises’ (public capacity above 100 persons) and ‘enhanced duty premises’ (public capacity above 800 persons). Roughly 100,000 locations in the UK, including shops, restaurants, nightclubs, entertainment venues, sports grounds, recreation venues and libraries, are likely to be affected.

What does it mean for hotels and serviced accommodation?

Those who are responsible for enhanced public premises will have a duty to ensure that a thorough terrorism evaluation has been conducted and reviewed on an annual basis in line with the new legislation. The organisation can be penalised, fined, and even imprisoned if a regulator has reasonable grounds to believe necessary steps have not been taken. Hotel and serviced accommodation managers will therefore need to deliver thorough evaluations of their venues and understand the necessary requirements for hosting events such as weddings, conferences, and other public gatherings.

How can GSA help?

Not complying with the restriction notices or the legislation could result in significant fines or up to two years imprisonment, so organisations must ensure they remain compliant with the legislation.

We have now added Martyn’s Law requirements to all our security assessments. Our trained staff can guide you through meeting all the requirements under the new legislation.

Contact our team today for information on how to get started.