Freedom of Information and Data Protection

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1 Devon & Cornwall Police Policy Impact Assessment Assessment Date: 03/05/16 Policy/Working Practice Title and Number D350 Critical and Major Incident Management Policy/Working Practice Version Date 22/02/17 Associated Working Practices Name of Business Area and Lead Name of person carrying out PIA C/Supt Jim Nye PIA Publication Date 22/02/17 This PIA was last reviewed on: 13/02/12 Operational Policy Officer Freedom of Information and Data Protection Has the policy been FOI marked and exemptions identified? Have the associated working practices been FOI marked and exemptions identified? Does the policy refer to personal information? Do the associated working practices refer to personal information? Are time periods for retention or the process for removal and disposal defined in the document? If no what legislation governs the retention and disposal of the personal information? /N/a Yes/ No/N/a Yes/No/N/a Health and Safety Do the policy or working practices have any health and safety implications for the public or staff? If yes, are these covered by any of the Generic Risk Assessments? List GRA reference numbers where applicable Has advice been sought from Health and Safety or Occupational Health? /N/a GRA Disaster Victim Recovery GRA major Incident Temporary Morturuay Duties 1

2 Name, date and comments received: Equality Impact Initial Screening 1. Significance & Impact: The relevance for equality depends on the nature and extent of the impact not just the numbers of people affected. Do the proposals affect service users, employees or the wider community? Do the proposals significantly affect service delivery, business processes or policy? Does it involve a significant commitment of resources? Do the proposals relate to an area where there are known inequalities? (e.g. hate crime, domestic abuse, accessibility, recruitment & progression) 2. What is the purpose of the policy/working practice? The purpose of policy D350 is to provide guidance for relevant staff in relation to critical and major incident amangement. Further, it provides definitions of critical and major incidents, and acknowledges APP guidance provided in this area of business. This policy draws together the guidance offered in a number of other policies, such as D143 Road Death Investigation, D83 Polcie use of Firearms (Operational) and D76 Police Search Operations. These documents are, enabled in this business area by D350 and they have their own PIAs / EIAs for their specific area of the business. 3. Relevance: How does the aim and purpose of the policy/working practice relate to each of the aims of the public sector equality duty? This section must be fully completed for each PIA. a) To eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment, victimisation and other conduct prohibited by the Equality Act 2010 In terms of a critical incident, the impact of one being declared will be highly likely to have a significant affect on the confidence of the victim, their family and or the community. The policy is highly strategic in nature, dealing with the management of a critical incident, as opposed to a specific area of crime. Where the incident relates to a specific crime, such as murder or child abuse, the policy and impact assessment for that type of 2

3 incident will contain the information on actions to eliminate unlawful discrimination. b) To advance equality of opportunity between people from different groups c) To foster good relations between people from different groups. The policy shows due regard by defining itself in accordance with what is recognised nationally, thereby promoting service delivery that can be applied in a nondiscriminatory way between those with protected characteristics. In following the guidance referred to in (b) above, this force will address such incidents in a way which will address the different needs and requirements of different groups at different times. 4. Is it likely that the proposals could affect particular protected groups differently? Age Disability Sexual Orientation Race Sex Religion or Belief Gender reassignment Pregnancy and Maternity Marriage or Civil Partnership Status Please provide details for each protected group where you have indicated Yes. Although it could be interpreted that all the above protected groups could be affected, as mentioned in section 2, the impacts are addressed in the PIA / EIAs for the supporting policies as mentioned in appendix B. 5. Have you identified any potential interference or issues in relation to Human Rights? Please note that the articles mentioned here represent some, but not necessarily all o the potential interferences under the Human Rights Act. Any and all other articles could, and should be considered, dependant on the nature of the incident, as per section 2 and 3(a). Article 2: Right to Life Article 5: Right to Liberty and Security Article 3: Prohibition of torture Article 6: Right to a fair trial Article 4: Prohibition of slavery and forced labour Article 7: No punishment without law 3

4 Article 8: Right to respect for private and family life Article 11: Freedom of assembly and association Article 1 or protocol 1: Protection of property Article 9: Freedom of thought, conscience and religion Article 12: Right to marry Article 2 of protocol1: Right to education Article 10: Freedom of expression Article 14: Prohibition of discrimination Article 3 of protocol 1: Right to free elections 6. Where any potential interference has been identified at section 5 please answer sections a-d below: Please note Articles 3,4,7, the first part of 9 as well as protocol 13 are absolute rights and cannot be justified. These must be mitigated within policy. The other Articles are qualified rights and must be justified within policy where mitigation is not possible. a) What is the potential for interference with an individual s rights? Article 2 Right to life. Article 3 Prohibition on Torture. Although any incident has the potential to become a major or critical incident, this definition includes incidents where an individuals right to life is potentially threatened, or where torture is an issue, for example. This policy addresses and mitigates this threat at a strategic and operational level, as detailed in the test of the policy as a whole. First Protocol, Article 1 Protection of Property A critical or major incident could, for example, result in the forced evacuation from an individuals home, thus denying them peaceful enjoyment of their possessions. b) What is the legal basis? Articles 2 and 3 The legal basis for the actions detailed within policy are contained within a wide range of legislation, dependant on the specifics of the incident. For example, an incident where the use of force is utilised is governed by Common Law Section 3 Criminal Law Act 1967 Section 117 Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 The Human Rights Act 1998 The Police (Conduct) Regulations 2008 the Police Standards of Professional Behaviour First Protocol, Article 1 The Human Rights Act empowers the state the right to enforce such laws as it deems necessary to control the use of property in accordance with the general interest 4

5 c) Are the interferences necessary? What are the legitimate aims? Articles 2 and 3 All potential interferences are supported in the relevant legislation. The legitimate aims are detailed in paragraph 1.1 of the policy, and states:- As part of this aim the Force is committed to the prevention and detection of crime, the protection of vulnerable communities and preserving the rights of individuals. In pursuit of these commitments this guide is designed to assist practitioners in identifying critical incidents and their subsequent management. The advice assists in identifying appropriate police responses to critical incidents, and recognises the potential to prevent incidents from becoming critical. The principles for both are the same the need to take advice and deploy resources early to prevent the need for remedial action later. First Protocol, Article 1 See response at (b) above. d) Are the interferences proportionate? See (c) 6. Proceed to full Equality Impact Assessment? 7. Seen by Equality and Diversity Unit Name: Date: Sent 23/05/16 (receipt acknowledged) Comments: None received. 8. Approved by Business Lead Name: C/Supt Jim Nye Signature: Date: 04/01/17 If progressing to full Equality Impact Assessment use the Equality and Diversity EIA template and start at step 2 (box 8). Both PIA and EIA together constitute a full EIA document. 5