§ Mr Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what study his Department has made of the growth of private security organisations; and if he will make a statement.
§ Dr. SummerskillInformation obtained from the police in 1971 showed that 741 organisations providing services for the protection of persons and property, including the installation of security equipment, were then known to the police to be operating in England and Wales. The information was not, however, in a form permitting any estimate to be made of the growth of such organisations.
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§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of Stale for the Home Department if he is satisfied with the current state of the law as it affects the activities of private security firms; and if he will make a statement.
§ Dr. SummerskillPrivate security firms and their employees have no special status under the law. Their activities are subject to the same legal restraints as those of all other private firms and citizens, and we do not consider that additional measures of legal control are called for.