As Martyn’s Law, the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill, reaches its final stages in Parliament to become law this summer, a new counter-terrorism resource has been launched to protect crowded places in Northern Ireland.

Martyn’s Law

Martyn’s Law will mandate that certain premises and events take steps to mitigate the impact of a terrorist attack and reduce harm in the event of one occurring.

For events and premises that fall into scope, this may include the provision of physical security measures, such as Hostile Vehicle Mitigation (HVM) to be put in place.

Crowdguard

Crowdguard, a leading HVM supplier, has opened a Belfast office to enable the delivery of protective measures from hostile vehicle incursions at Northern Irish events.

Previously, such UK Government-approved resources were not directly available in Northern Ireland, which meant there was a prohibitive cost to bring them over from the mainland for events.

Crowdguard protects some of the biggest events, stadia and crowded places across the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.

These include:

• The Fringe
• Godiva
• Tramlines Festivals

Crowdguard also helps to protect:

• Christmas markets
• Remembrance Sunday parades
• Large-scale sporting events such as the Great North & Scottish Runs, WRU Six Nations tournaments and many football stadia across all leagues

Russ Phillips

Their leadership team includes Russ Phillips, whose 30-year police career included the National Counter Terrorism Police HQ (NCTPHQ) as part of the National Vehicle Threat Mitigation Unit.

His experience of risk assessment, risk mitigation strategy and HVM deployment encompasses major events including:

• Operation Lyceum – the Wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex
• Operation London Bridge – the death of Her Majesty the Queen
• G7 and COP26
• Wimbledon Championships
• The Champions’ League final in Cardiff
• FIFA Euros 2021

“A rated level of protection”

Speaking at today’s launch in Belfast, Iain Moran, Manging Director of Crowdguard, commented: “Northern Ireland has amazing events with large crowds attending across the province.

“Sadly, these events have not previously had access to affordable HVM solutions that offer a rated level of protection from a hostile vehicle incursion into these crowds.”

Moran continued: “Many of these events take place in urban settings, where attending crowds are using public roads to get to and from the event, which make them vulnerable to the threat of a hostile vehicle attack.

“Crowdguard specialises in helping event organisers understand these vulnerabilities and designing a proportionate HVM plan that considers security, operational requirements and budget.

“Our trusted Plan, Provide, Protect model ensures that temporary, semi-permanent and permanent HVM solutions are tailored to the unique needs of each event and we want to support the delivery of safer events by putting these counter-terrorism resources in the country, so they are readily available,” he concluded.

Testing and approval

Crowdguard’s products are all tested and approved by the UK Government’s National Protective Security Authority (NPSA) who scientifically test all security equipment used in the protection of national assets and high security locations across the United Kingdom.

Due to the extensive testing they undertake, their ratings are recognised globally.