Team Blitz India
LONDON: The Government has committed an additional £31 million to protect the UK’s democratic processes from disruption and provide new security provisions to elected representatives over next year, according to a statement from the Home Office.
The investment will be used to enhance police capabilities, increase private sector security provisions for those facing a higher risk, and expand cyber security advice to locally elected representatives.
It will also ensure all elected representatives and candidates have dedicated police contact to liaise with on security matters, significantly expanding the support provided under current policing arrangements, the statement added.
Home Secretary James Cleverly has assured that he will continue to work closely with the police to provide elected representatives with the support they need.
Security Minister Tom Tugendhat added that over the past few weeks there have been “disgraceful attempts to intimidate MPs and undermine our democratic processes”. Saying that such behaviour is a threat to democracy, and toxic for society, he promised that whatever is necessary “will be done to protect those who’ve been elected to represent their local communities, and to defend our democratic freedoms”.
As part of the additional funding announced on February 28, a new communities fund will be established to support the deployment of additional police patrols each week in England and Wales, in response to increased community tensions.
Local police forces will be able to draw upon the fund to surge policing presence in local areas in response to specific events. This will increase support available to vulnerable communities, bolstering police visibility, and increasing public confidence.
The UK’s protective security system has undergone significant reform in recent years, most notably following the murders of Jo Cox and Sir David Amess, with the latter resulting in the MP security review, said the Home Office release.
