Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011
Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 (c. 13) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
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Baroness Browning, Minister of State for Crime Prevention and Antisocial Behaviour Reduction (Lords)
- England and Wales
- Sections 58, 152, 154, 157, and 158, and Schedule 58 also extend to Scotland and Northern Ireland, Section 98 and Schedule 15 extend to England, Wales and Scotland
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| Long title | An Act to make provision about the administration and governance of police forces; about the licensing of, and for the imposition of a late night levy in relation to, the sale and supply of alcohol, and for the repeal of provisions about alcohol disorder zones; for the repeal of sections 132 to 138 of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 and for the prohibition of certain activities in Parliament Square; to enable provision in local authority byelaws to include powers of seizure and forfeiture; about the control of dangerous or otherwise harmful drugs; to restrict the issue of arrest warrants for certain extra-territorial offences; and for connected purposes. |
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| Citation | 2011 c. 13 |
| Introduced by | Theresa May, Home Secretary (Commons) Baroness Browning, Minister of State for Crime Prevention and Antisocial Behaviour Reduction (Lords) |
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| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 15 September 2011 |
| Commencement | various[c] |
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Status: Amended | |
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| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Revised text of statute as amended | |
| Text of the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk. | |
Provisions
It transfers the control of police forces from police authorities to elected Police and Crime Commissioners.[1] The first police commissioner elections were held in November 2012. The next elections took place in May 2016 and will subsequently take place every four years.
The act repeals the provisions in the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 which prohibit protests near Parliament Square, and instead restricts certain "prohibited activities" in Parliament Square garden and the adjoining footways. The police have used these powers to confiscate pizza boxes, tarpaulin and umbrellas from protesters in Parliament Square.[2]
The act removed the statutory requirement for the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs to include scientists. The move follows the sacking of David Nutt from the council in 2009.[3]
Section 153 of the act amends section 1 of Magistrates' Courts Act 1980 so that an arrest warrant for an offence of universal jurisdiction cannot be issued without the consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions, unless applied for by a Crown Prosecutor.
Proposed amendments
In 2021, the government published their proposed Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill which would amend the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act, in relation to behaviour around and access to the Parliamentary estate.[4] This was enacted as the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022.
In 2025, the government intends to abolish police and crime commissioners by 2028.[5]