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8th February 2023
New laws, in force from 1 October 2023 will make a number of amendments to the regime governing regulated and reportable substances under the Poisons Act 1972.
The purpose of the amendments is to strengthen existing safeguards that are in place to prevent the illicit use of certain explosives precursors and poisons to cause harm. These amendments were identified following a detailed review of the legislation relating to controls of explosives precursors and poisons following the Manchester Arena and Parsons Green explosives attacks in 2017.
Following the Manchester Arena attack in 2017, an Operational Improvement Review was announced by the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police and Director General of MI5.
This was designed to identify and take forward improvements to processes and capabilities for managing terrorism investigations. Lord Anderson was commissioned to deliver a stocktake, which made three broad recommendations concerning Exploiting Data; Multi-Agency Engagement; and Domestic Extremism.
The recommendations outlined in the review led to a review of the policy relating to explosives precursors and poisons, where a number of key legislative gaps were identified. Policy proposals were considered based on this evidence and scientific evidence surrounding the risk posed by specific chemical substances, resulting in a public consultation which ran from 16th December 2021 – 10th March 2022.
Failure to comply with the requirements imposed by the new regulations is a criminal offence (see section 7(4) of the 1972 Act).
Our crime and regulatory lawyers are fully versed in the new requirements and can assist any business needing advice as to their legal obligations in this area.
We ensure we keep up to date with any changes in legislation and case law so that we are always best placed to advise you properly. If you would like to discuss any aspect of your case, please call 0113 2440597 or email info@ogcclaw.com and let us help.
Image credit: “waste chemical…” by h080 is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.