UK expands police protection for non-MPs and orders urgent security review

The UK government has announced that political figures who are not MPs will receive police support, in a move aimed at strengthening protection for people serving in public life. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood told MPs that the current arrangements were not sufficient for peers, former MPs and party spokespeople. She also said an urgent independent review would examine security arrangements for high-profile figures, including politicians and royals.

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Mahmood said the new support would include access to a named police officer and help with wider security measures, although she did not set out the full detail of how the system would work. The review will be led by former national security adviser Stephen Lovegrove and is due to report within six months. It will look at physical threats, online risks and dangers linked to a more polarised society.

The announcement comes three months after the death of former Conservative MP and Reform UK spokeswoman Ann Widdecombe at her home in Devon, where she had sustained serious injuries. Joshua Kerry, 28, has been charged with her murder and also with preparing acts of terrorism against Reform UK leader Nigel Farage. The government said the changes were needed because threats, abuse and violence are not part of democratic politics.

The issue of political safety has become more prominent in the UK in recent years, following the murders of Conservative MP Sir David Amess in 2021 and Labour MP Jo Cox in 2016. Those killings prompted renewed scrutiny of how elected representatives are protected, both in public and in private life. The latest announcement extends that concern beyond sitting MPs to others who remain active in politics but do not hold a seat in Parliament.

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The review led by Lovegrove will run alongside separate work by Sir Robert Buckland, who is examining the murder of Sir David Amess. Mahmood said the new review would take a "root and branch" look at the wider security environment. That includes not only direct physical threats, but also online abuse and the risks created by political division.

The government has not yet explained exactly how the new police support will be delivered or which figures will qualify in practice. It is also not clear how the new review will interact with existing protection arrangements already in place for some public figures. What happens next will depend on the findings of the review and on how quickly ministers and police translate the announcement into operational changes.

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