NEWS


MARTYN'S LAW PASSES ROYAL ASSENT


The Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act, also known as Martyn’s Law, received Royal Assent on 3 April and has become law.


The new law, named after Martyn Hett, who was one of 22 people killed in the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing, will strengthen security measures within public venues in the UK to protect against terrorist attacks.


Gavin Scarr-Hall, Director of Health & Safety at Peninsula, said: “Every employer already has a legal duty to ensure the health, safety and welfare of employees and visitors to their premises. This bill is designed to clarify responsibilities to help prevent another tragedy like the one we saw in Manchester in 2017.


“Almost eight years have passed since the attack, but the threat to the public remains high. The UK’s national threat level currently stands at ‘substantial’, meaning an attack is likely to happen.


“The Arena bombing inquiry concluded that there were multiple failings on the night, not only by venue staff


TUC BACKS CALL FOR ASBESTOS REGISTER


but also emergency services. The new law puts more requirements onto venue management to prepare properly, not only to minimise the risk of a terror attack, but also to deal with it should the worst occur.


“Under the new law, employers, venue owners and event organisers will have a legal duty to invest in infrastructure and build strong relationships with neighbouring businesses and emergency services. The government has said there will be an implementation period of at least 24 months before the Act comes into force, to allow businesses to prepare. A new regulator will be established through the Security Industry Authority (SIA) to ensure compliance.


“Businesses should understand where they sit within the tier system in order to understand their specific responsibilities. The higher the capacity at a venue, the more enhanced the requirements will be. Not every business will be required to adhere to all the requirements, but every employer should carry out a terrorism evaluation to understand their duties under the new law.”


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this approach is now widely recognised as insufficient, as the number of people diagnosed with the fatal cancers it causes remains at an all-time high.


The TUC is also calling for a new legal duty to safely remove asbestos, with a clear timetable for 40 years for its removal from all public buildings.


Rt Hon Sir Stephen Timms, the Work and Pensions minister with responsibility for health and safety, wrote last year: "Removing asbestos from schools and hospitals over a 10-year period would, over 50 years, benefit the UK economy to the tune of around £11.6bn and benefit the Exchequer by around £3.6bn."


TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “Everyone should be safe where they work. But asbestos is still present in hundreds of thousands of workplaces across Britain, including most schools and hospitals. Many workers aren't aware it’s there, and many aren’t aware of the very serious dangers.


“Britain has the highest rate of asbestos deaths in the world. It’s time to end this national scandal.


The TUC has backed proposals in a new report published on 4 April by Asbestos Information CIC to create a national database to map asbestos presence in buildings.


These proposals would create a regime where asbestos could be more safely managed, and ultimately removed, from all buildings.


The current legal framework allows for asbestos in buildings to be managed in situ, rather than removed. But


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“The proposed mapping tool would help us know who is at risk from asbestos and would be an important step towards its removal from all public buildings. And it would enable us to identify buildings with asbestos which require environmental upgrades – ensuring the removal is done at the same time.


“The only way to protect today’s workers and future generations is through the safe removal of asbestos from every workplace.”


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