Violent Crime Reduction Bill

moved Amendment No. 55: After Clause 58, insert the following new clause- ““REMOVAL OF SPORTS GROUNDS ETC. FROM PRIVATE SECURITY INDUSTRY REGULATION In section 4 of the Private Security Industry Act 2001 (c. 12) (exemptions from licensing requirement) after subsection (5) insert- ““(6) A relevant employee who engages in licensable conduct shall not be guilty of an offence under section 3 in respect of that conduct if it is carried out in connection with the use of a certified sports ground or certified sports stand for purposes for which its safety certificate has effect. (7) In subsection (6) ““a relevant employee””, in relation to a certified sports ground or certified sports stand, means a person employed by- (a) the holder of its safety certificate; (b) a person who manages the ground or stand or occupies the premises where it is or owns an interest in those premises; (c) a company which is in the same group as a company falling within paragraph (b). (8) In subsection (6) the reference to the use of a certified sports ground for purposes for which the safety certificate has effect is a reference to- (a) the use of the ground for activities specified in a general safety certificate in force in respect of the use of that ground; or (b) the use of the ground, on an occasion specified in a special safety certificate which is so in force, for activities specified in that certificate. (9) In subsection (6) the reference to the use of a certified sports stand for purposes for which the safety certificate has effect is a reference to- (a) the use of the stand for viewing activities specified in a general safety certificate in force in respect of the use of that stand; or (b) the use of the stand, on an occasion specified in a special safety certificate which is so in force, for viewing activities specified in that certificate. (10) In this section- ““certified sports ground”” means a sports ground in respect of which a safety certificate is in force; ““certified sports stand”” means a sports stand in respect of which a safety certificate is in force; ““company””, ““holding company”” and ““subsidiary”” have the same meanings as in section 736 of the Companies Act 1985 (c. 6); ““group””, in relation to a company, means a holding company and all of its subsidiaries; ““safety certificate””, ““general safety certificate”” and ““special safety certificate””- (a) in relation to a sports ground, have the same meanings as in the Safety of Sports Grounds Act 1975 (see sections 1(4) and 17(1) of that Act); and (b) in relation to a sports stand, have the same meanings as in Part 3 of the Fire Safety and Safety of Places of Sport Act 1987 (see section 26(2) and (11) of that Act); ““sports ground”” has the same meaning as in that Act of 1975 (see section 17(1) of that Act); and ““sports stand”” means a stand within the meaning of Part 3 of that Act of 1987 (see section 26(11) of that Act).”””” The noble Lord said: My Lords, the amendment would remove from the remit of the Private Security Industry Act 2001 in-house personnel who undertake the activities of a security operative on any part of a premises that is covered by a safety certificate under either the Safety of Sports Grounds Act 1975 or the Fire Safety and Safety of Places of Sport Act 1987. Noble Lords may recall the debate we had on this subject on 17 May this year, when I tabled a similar amendment, supported by the noble Lords, Lord Glentoran and Lord Addington, who speak on sport for the Conservative and Liberal Democrat Front Benches. I am happy that they both support this amendment, as well as consequential Amendments Nos. 58 and 59. Further contributions in favour of the amendment were also made then by my noble friends Lord Hoyle and Lord Faulkner of Worcester, both of whom have a great knowledge of the sporting world. It is worth reminding the House briefly of this issue. The Private Security Industry Act 2001 was intended to raise security standards in licensed premises and reduce criminality within the security sector. Unfortunately, the Act has been inadvertently applied to stewards employed by governing bodies of clubs at sporting grounds. There is no evidence of criminality or poor standards in stewarding services at sporting events, yet the cost to licence them under the Security Industry Authority would be prohibitively high. For many stewards involved in quite standard activity the requisite qualifications would cost several hundreds of pounds and would require hours devoted to training time. Clearly, the financial and administrative costs of licensing sufficient stewards to work at events held at ventures such as Twickenham, Lords or the Wimbledon championships would be huge—and we are not talking simply about a loss of financial revenue. As well as posing a threat in increased costs at sporting events it also threatens to divert resources away from investment in effective stewarding to licensing costs and training procedures that are not appropriate. The amendment tabled in May was withdrawn following the Minister’s reassurance that the Government would consult the sports world thoroughly on this issue and, if appropriate, return to the matter when the Bill reached us here on Report. That is what we are doing today. I pay tribute to the Minister at the Dispatch Box today, Richard Caborn and Vernon Coaker—the Ministers in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Home Office—and their officials, who worked diligently with me and the sports sector over the summer to get this issue right. There has been detailed consultation with the sports world, including the England and Wales Cricket Board, the Lawn Tennis Association, the Rugby Football Union, the Rugby Football League, the Football Association, the Central Council of Physical Recreation and others. I thank all those bodies for their contribution to the consultation and the briefing provided to me. I pay tribute to them, too, for the existing standards in place in our sports stadiums, which can truly be described as among the best in the world for the safety and comfort that they offer spectators. It is worth explaining briefly to the House the specific arrangements that will apply to football grounds under this arrangement. For the official record, I should say that I am the president of the Football Foundation, a body which in its past life as the Football Trust did a huge amount of work to invest in better facilities and safety at football grounds. Much of the credit is due to the noble Lord, Lord Faulkner of Worcester, who, when he was vice-chairman of the Football Trust, did so much of the essential work that was carried out then. This amendment will apply also to football, which has a slightly different safety and licensing regime from that applied to other sports, coming under the remit of the Football Licensing Authority. As was previously agreed with the Home Office as a result of the problems that I outlined, football will receive an exemption from the requirements of the Private Security Industry Act 2001. The football authorities in the shape of the Football Association, the Football League and the FA Premier League have all given undertakings to the Home Office that as part of their inclusion within the framework of this amendment they will continue to implement the outlined framework that would have applied under the exemption process. In practice, that means that they will continue to operate effective steward training courses and include a recently introduced module on conflict management. The football authorities have also committed that football clubs will apply criminal record checks to their in-house security staff, who undertake activities that without my amendment would be licensable under the Private Security Industry Act. In recent years, the football authorities have worked hard to ensure that our football grounds are among the safest in the world, and these latest commitments on steward training and qualifications on Criminal Records Bureau checks will further safeguard members of the public attending football matches in this country. I commend the football authorities for the constructive approach they have taken on this issue. I have been informed by government Ministers that, should this amendment be carried today, its consequences will come into effect immediately upon the Bill receiving Royal Assent. That is important, as it means we will minimise the time that in-house sports stewards and security staff continue to work—technically, at least—contrary to the law. The amendment is slightly different in approach from that tabled previously. That is because it needs to ensure that all in-house staff—that is, those who are employed rather than contracted—should not be required to be licensed by the SIA when they undertake the activities of a security operative on any part of a premises that is covered by a safety certificate, under either the Safety of Sports Grounds Act 1975 or the Fire Safety and Safety of Places of Sport Act 1987. The original amendment would only have removed some staff on specific premises who undertook licensable conduct, but not other personnel, including those who supervise certain other people and those who are themselves provided by their employer to a third party. Will the Minister confirm that he will issue formal guidance notes on how the new measures will apply? It is important that sporting events organisers like the police and the SIA will understand the new arrangements, but clear guidance is also needed on the arrangements that will apply to contracted stewards, who will of course be required to be licensed only if they conduct licensable activity. I urge the Minister to publish a clear definition of licensable activity at sports grounds. Will the Minister also confirm that in future the legal requirements for ensuring that contracted stewards working at sports grounds who are licensed falls upon the employer of those stewards; that is, the contractor and not the sporting event organiser who has purchased their service? Sports organisations I speak to are concerned that they will still be subjected to unnecessary inquiries and monitoring from the Security Industry Authority. It is important that the Minister clarifies that from the Dispatch Box. I commend the amendment to the House by reading the following words, which have been sent to me by the Central Council of Physical Recreation. It represents the sporting sector in the UK, and says that, "““this exclusion for sport will come as a great relief to a number of CCPR member organisations, who would otherwise have incurred a very considerable and unwelcome financial and regulatory burden””." I beg to move.