NOVEMBER | FEATURE
Nick Aldworth , director of consultancy Risk to Resolution , was the Metropolitan Police Services Counter Terrorism Protective Security Lead at the time of the Manchester Arena and London Bridge & Borough Market terrorist attacks in 2017 . He recounts the journey so far .
Towards the end of June 2017 , a
letter arrived at New Scotland
Yard . It had come from the Home Secretary ’ s office and was from a young woman who had been caught up in the London Bridge and Borough Market terrorist attack on the evening of 3 June that year .
The woman described her horrific experience of being caught up in the attack and how it had been made worse by nobody around her knowing what they should do . Unbeknown to her at the time , this letter kickstarted counter-terrorism policing ’ s campaign for legislative change that would require owners and operators of publicly accessible places and spaces to do more to protect their customers . To start with , the Home Office was none too keen to consider new legislation . It was still reeling from three terrorist attacks in only a few months and the challenges of preparing the police and security services for more to come , which of course they did . Nobody had time or appetite for new legislation , especially as it was unclear what that might include . Twentyseventeen was a year of fire fighting not a year of thinking too far ahead .
A little over a year later Figen Murray , the mother of Martyn Hett
Nick Aldworth who was murdered at the Manchester Arena on 22 May 2017 , visited me at New Scotland Yard . She had come to share her concerns about a visit she had made to a theatre in Manchester during which there had been no security checks of people entering the building . I was terrified at the prospect of meeting Figen . I thought she might be angry at me , a representative of the State , for the loss of her son . I was worried about how to relate to someone who had been through something so traumatic that I could barely comprehend it . I quickly found that Figen and I were completely in tune with each other and while I couldn ’ t influence legislative change , I could help her campaign in Manchester . I also found a new friend .
I sent a letter to Andy Burnham , the Mayor of Manchester who she was about to meet , saying that her plan for a local code of practice to get businesses in Manchester to be more responsible for their customers , was one that I fully supported . Not long after this I retired and decided to join forces with Figen and Brendan Cox , the husband of Jo Cox MP who had been brutally murdered in 2015 , and support a professionally organised campaign for change .
We each had things to bring to the campaign . Figen ’ s personal experience , her persistence and clarity of message meant that people wanted to listen . Brendan brought political contacts and campaigning knowledge that were second to none . I was able to bring some technical knowledge about the art of the possible and the things that were missing from the UK Counter- Terrorism Strategy ( CONTEST ). Together we campaigned for the Protect Duty in the name and memory
What is Martyn ’ s Law ?
• A requirement for businesses to engage with CT awareness training
• A requirement to undertake a vulnerability assessment
• A requirement to proportionately mitigate risks
• A requirement to have a CT plan in the event of an attack
• A requirement for local authorities to prepare for terrorism
of Martyn , and that is how we came to be the Martyn ’ s Law campaign .
A Conservative leadership campaign and general election in 2019 meant that there was political interest in making improvements to the system . We managed to get each of the four main candidates for the leadership position to endorse the campaign and subsequently , through the brilliant support of Brandon Lewis , the then Security Minister , got it incorporated into the Conservative Party manifesto . The Conservative win meant that Martyn ’ s Law could now become a possibility .
The first stage of the legislative process , consultation , was due to start in March 2020 but was stalled because of the coronavirus crisis . The government remains committed to undertaking consultation on a law that should not be burdensome in terms of time or cost , to businesses . There is potential for the consultation to start in a matter of weeks although the ongoing health crisis is understandably occupying the governments attention at the moment .
Our message to all businesses in the UK is to keep your eyes open for the consultation and to participate in it when the opportunity arises . We owe it to all those people who have been victims of terrorism to do all that is reasonable to stop it from happening again . Martyn ’ s Law will do that .
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