A Counter-Terrorism Bill will overhaul the terrorist licensing regime, and introduce polygraph testing, according to the Government. It says it will also review support available to victims of terrorism, including families and loved ones. The Government is to give £500,000 to the Victims of Terrorism Unit.
Home Secretary Priti Patel said: “The senseless terror attack at Fishmongers’ Hall in November confronted us with some hard truths about how we deal with terrorist offenders, which is why we immediately announced a review into sentencing and licence conditions, to do whatever is necessary to stop these sickening attacks from taking place. Today we are delivering on those promises, giving police and probation officers the resources they need to investigate and track offenders, introducing tougher sentences, and launching major reviews into how offenders are managed after they are released. We will also review the support available for victims and their families to make sure they receive the help they need.”
Also proposed, more counter-terrorism specialist probation staff, to deliver a set of new national standards for managing terrorists on licence – the Fishmongers’ Hall attacker having been a convicted terrorist; and training of front-line prison and probation staff, who are described as the first line of defence in identifying and challenging extremism in prisons and probation.
Also promised is an independent review of the way agencies, such as police, the probation service, and the security services investigate, monitor and manage terrorist offenders – called Multi Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA). This will be led by Jonathan Hall QC, the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation.
And Justice Secretary Robert Buckland said: “Terrorists pose a great risk to our society and our way of life, which is why we must bring them to justice and keep the public safe. Coupled with our strong measures to manage terrorists behind bars, this Counter-Terrorism Bill toughens restrictions on offenders’ communications, increases the number of specialist staff managing them and will ensure they are monitored effectively.”
Comment
For Labour, Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott said: “After ten years in government, a major overhaul now is actually an admission of failure. Major terrorist outrages have occurred all too frequently, including attacks by perpetrators who were known to the security services.
“The fight against terrorism has been undermined by cuts to policing, including community policing, a lack of effective coordination between police and security services as well as the flawed Prevent programme. All of these need to change if we are going to improve the safety of our citizens.”
