In addition, the Poisons Act 1972 will be reviewed to
assess whether it should cover more acids and harmful
substances, and the Home Office will work with police and
the Ministry of Justice to assess whether the powers
available to the courts, including sentencing, are
sufficient to deal with these serious offences.
These measures will form part of a wide-ranging review of
the law enforcement and criminal justice response,
existing legislation, access to harmful products and the
support offered to victims.
New guidance will also be provided to police officers on
preventing attacks, searching potential perpetrators for
harmful substances and responding to victims at the
scene. And further work will also take place with
retailers to agree measures to restrict sales of acids
and other corrosive substances.
Home Secretary said:
Acid attacks are horrific crimes which have a
devastating effect on victims, both physically and
emotionally.
It is vital that we do everything we can to prevent
these sickening attacks happening in the first place.
We must also ensure that the police and other emergency
services are able to respond as effectively as
possible, that sentences reflect the seriousness of the
offences and victims are given the immediate support
they need.
The announcement comes as indicative figures from the
National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) suggest that more
than 400 acid or corrosive substance attacks were carried
out in the six months up to April 2017, based on returns
from 39 forces in England and Wales. The returns also
indicated that bleach, ammonia and acid were the most
commonly used substances.
The action plan has been developed with the help of the
police, health professionals and retailers and follows an
event on Tuesday, 4 July, which was hosted by the Home
Office and the NPCC.
Other measures in the action plan include:
-
improving police recording and reporting of offences;
-
commissioning research to better understand the
motivations for carrying out these attacks;
-
confirming appropriate support is provided to
victims, from the initial medical response to giving
evidence in court and the long-term recovery beyond;
and
-
ensuring that victim impact statements are completed
in every case by the police so courts are made aware
of the full impact of the attack. The police will
also be encouraged to prepare Community Impact
Statements to show how such attacks have affected
communities.
NPCC lead for Corrosive Attacks, Assistant Chief
Constable Rachel Kearton said:
Police have dealt with a number of high-profile cases
in recent months and we continue to collect data from
police forces across England and Wales to understand
the scale and extent of these attacks and develop our
ability to support and protect victims.
While it is virtually impossible to ban the sale of all
corrosive substances, we are working closely with the
Home Office and retailers to determine how we can keep
these products from people who intend to cause harm.
I would urge anyone who is a victim of this type of
attack to report it so that we can deal with the matter
positively and sensitively.
The Minister for Crime, Safeguarding and Vulnerability,
, will outline the
plans during a Parliamentary debate in the Commons
tomorrow (Monday, 17 July).
