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Magazine Issue 8 - Spring 1999 | ||
| Private security firms to get powers of arrest The government announced during the Queen’s speech in November 1998 that it was planning to give private security firms the power to arrest people. When implemented, the legislation will allow guards from companies like Group 4 and Securicor to arrest members of the public for failing to pay fines or breaching court orders. Both police and court officials are alarmed that the new laws will be a step too far in privatising the powers of law-enforcement. Fred Broughton, chairman of the Police Federation, said: "Offenders who fall into these categories may be difficult and sometimes violent individuals. This is why powers of arrest should remain a role for the police. Untrained and unaccountable private security should not be used on these occasions." Probation officers were not impressed either. Harry Fletcher, of the National Association of Probation Officers, said: "Privatisation to low-paid staff is not the solution. The Government needs to fund the courts and the police to do the job properly... There could be major problems when people from the likes of Group 4 or Securicor try to arrest members of the public." Up to 60,000 people a year could be arrested privately each year if the new law goes ahead, ostensibly to release more police time for the real business of fighting crime. [1] But security companies are notorious for their low pay, high turnover of staff, and inadequate training. One of the major recommendations of the Ramsbotham enquiry into the detention of asylum-seekers was that Group 4 security guards at Campsfield House be given more effective training. But the government - in its desperation to sell as many state functions as possible to private corporations - seems to be ignoring this advice. [1] Independent, 24 Nov 1998 Group 4 |