Figen Murray, the force behind Martyn’s Law and consequent Protect Duty legislation in the UK, has called on new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak via Twitter, as well as Home Secretary Suella Braverman and Security Minister Tugenhat, to keep the security legislation on the legislative agenda.
Figen Murray is the mother of Martyn Hett, who at 29 years old was killed in the terrorist attack at the Manchester Arena in May 2017. Figen is the force behind Martyn’s Law, a proposed legislation that requires publicly accessible locations to bring in security measures against the threat of terrorism. Martyn’s Law will hopefully form part of the Protect Duty legislation.
For the past four years Figen has been campaigning for the Government to bring in new security legislation, working closely with the Home Office and previous Security Ministers who have been in the role. In the message, released on Twitter today, she calls for a meeting with Sunak, “from one parent to another, to explain to you what it is like to lose somebody to an act of terrorism”.
The Protect Duty was announced in the Queen’s Speech earlier this year, however progress has been slow since, as the Government has grappled with a series of crises’, with two Prime Ministers having taken office between the announcement to now.
Figen spoke passionately about the need for legislation requiring publicly accessible venues to undertake security audits and reviews at IFSEC International earlier this year – watch the interview with IFSEC Global at the show, here.
