My Lords, this instrument, which was laid before Parliament on 7 September 2023, relates to Prevent. Prevent is one of the pillars of Contest, the United Kingdom’s counterterrorism strategy. The aim of Prevent is to stop people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism. It also extends to supporting the rehabilitation and disengagement of those already involved in terrorism. These aims could scarcely be more important.
Put simply, Prevent is an early intervention programme to keep all of us safe. To do so effectively, it requires front-line sectors across society, including education, healthcare, local authorities, criminal justice agencies
and the police, to support this mission. This is why we have the Prevent duty, set out in the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015. It sits alongside long-established duties on professionals to protect people from a range of other harms, such as involvement in gangs or physical and sexual exploitation. The Prevent duty helps to ensure that people who are susceptible to radicalisation are offered timely interventions before it becomes too late.
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We cannot pretend that this is easy. Radicalisation is complex and there is no single track to a person becoming radicalised. There are many factors that can, either alone or combined, lead someone to subscribe to extremist ideology and, in some cases, terrorism. These factors often include exposure to radicalising influences, real and perceived grievances and an individual’s own susceptibility.
The Prevent guidance exists to support and provide reassurance to those working in front-line sectors on how to navigate these challenging situations. The Counter-Terrorism and Security Act requires specified authorities to have regard to this guidance. It is challenging, but we must always strive for excellence.
The Government are committed to ensuring that Prevent is effective. The Independent Review of Prevent—the IRP—was published on 8 February 2023. In it, Sir William Shawcross made 34 recommendations, all of which were accepted by the Home Secretary in the Government’s response. The Government are working at pace to drive improvements. We expect to have implemented at least 29 of the 34 recommendations within a year of publication and the rest shortly thereafter.
We introduced the new security threat check to ensure that decision-making is always informed by a proper consideration of the current threat picture. Updated training has been provided for public sector staff subject to the Prevent duty. The updated guidance, which is the subject of this statutory instrument, was published on 7 September and responds to several of Sir William’s recommendations. The guidance has updated Prevent’s objectives to make it clear that Prevent should
“tackle the ideological causes of terrorism”.
It sets out requirements more clearly, articulating the need for high-quality training so that risk can be identified and managed. It provides an updated threat picture and gives details of the strategic security threat check, which helps Prevent to recognise and respond to the greatest threats. This will ensure that Prevent is well-equipped to counter the threats that we face and the ideologies underpinning them.
As well as responding to the Independent Review of Prevent’s recommendations, the guidance reflects current best practice. It supports and exemplifies the excellent work that we know takes place across the country to keep us safe and to help to prevent people from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism. The guidance will assist statutory partners to understand how best to comply with the duty. It includes details of the capabilities that they should have to be able to identify and manage risk. It also advises on how they can help to create an environment where the ideologies that are used to radicalise people into terrorism are challenged and not permitted to flourish.
People with Prevent responsibilities were consulted on the guidance. A range of key governmental partners were engaged throughout the development of the updated guidance and their feedback has been positive. The Government have been working closely with these partners to roll out the guidance and support its implementation.
Subject to the approval of the House, this statutory instrument will bring the new guidance into effect on 31 December 2023, replacing the outdated guidance from 2015. It will strengthen the Prevent system and help to keep us safe, which is why I commend it to the Committee and beg to move.