ICC Wales has founded a cross-sector Protect Duty Events Industry Group. It has been created to ensure the UK business events industry has all of the necessary information to prepare for the Government’s proposed Protect Duty legislation.

The new legislation, which will have a significant impact on how venues and organisers put safety and security measures in place, is being introduced to increase safety in all publicly accessible locations across the UK.

The legislation is the direct result of years of campaigning by Figen Murray OBE, the mother of Martyn Hett who was killed in the Manchester Arena terrorist attack in 2017. The new legislation, also known as Martyn’s Law, formalises the responsibilities and actions that venues must take to mitigate the risk of a terrorist attack.

The Protect Duty Events Industry Group has been established by ICC Wales following its Protect Duty Report published in March. The group, which will work collaboratively with organisations across the UK events industry including the Business Visits and Events Partnership (BVEP) and the Association of Event Venues (AEV), is made up of leading conference organisers, destinations, associations and suppliers.

The first meeting will take place on October 17, and will report its findings directly to BVEP’s Government and Advocacy Working Group.

Commenting on the Protect Duty Events Industry Group, Danielle Bounds, sales director at ICC Wales, said: “From our initial study on Protect Duty, it was apparent that there remains a lack of knowledge about the legislation across the events industry. Our aim is to ensure that event venues and organisers can fully comply when Protect Duty comes into effect. We all have an important part to play, and the Protect Duty Events Industry Group will continue those critical conversations around the legislation and feed its findings directly to the BVEP to ensure that both industry and government are aware of what is taking place.”