Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005

82Protection of persons involved in investigations or proceedings

(1)A protection provider may make such arrangements as he considers appropriate for the purpose of protecting a person of a description specified in Schedule 5 if—

(a)the protection provider considers that the person’s safety is at risk by virtue of his being a person of a description so specified, and

(b)the person is ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom.

(2)A protection provider may vary or cancel any arrangements made by him under subsection (1) if he considers it appropriate to do so.

(3)If a protection provider makes arrangements under subsection (1) or cancels arrangements made under that subsection, he must record that he has done so.

(4)In determining whether to make arrangements under subsection (1), or to vary or cancel arrangements made under that subsection, a protection provider must, in particular, have regard to—

(a)the nature and extent of the risk to the person’s safety,

(b)the cost of the arrangements,

(c)the likelihood that the person, and any person associated with him, will be able to adjust to any change in their circumstances which may arise from the making of the arrangements or from their variation or cancellation (as the case may be), and

(d)if the person is or might be a witness in legal proceedings (whether or not in the United Kingdom), the nature of the proceedings and the importance of his being a witness in those proceedings.

(5)A protection provider is—

(a)a chief officer of a police force in England and Wales;

(b)a chief constable of a police force in Scotland;

(c)the Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland;

(d)the Director General of SOCA;

(e)any of the Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs;

(f)the Director of the Scottish Drug Enforcement Agency;

(g)a person designated by a person mentioned in any of the preceding paragraphs to exercise his functions under this section.

(6)The Secretary of State may, after consulting the Scottish Ministers, by order amend Schedule 5 so as to add, modify or omit any entry.

(7)Nothing in this section affects any power which a person has (otherwise than by virtue of this section) to make arrangements for the protection of another person.