Assessing the Regulation of Private Security across Europe

Abstract

The importance and expansion of the role of private security officers in policing have led many countries to introduce special legislation to govern them. Many industrialized countries have a long history of such measures. The structures and standards introduced, however, have varied significantly. In North America generally minimal standards have been mandated that centre on character. In many European countries, by contrast, standards have been comprehensive, sometimes including hundreds of hours of mandatory training. In England and Wales, however, it was only in 2001 that such legal intervention was finally introduced, and the system that has begun to unfold has caused much debate on its effectiveness. Significant sectors have been excluded, and comprehensive standards of regulation have been rejected for an approach barely above North American standards of governance. This paper will examine the emerging English system of legal control. It will compare some of its features with those of other European countries and produce a league table from this. Reference will also be made to North America and Australia. It will be argued that the system to be introduced for security guards in England and Wales falls below European norms and needs to be more demanding if the performance and accountability of the industry are to be enhanced and the industry is to play the expanding role in policing that many increasingly expect.