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It’s hard to believe that seven years have passed since the Manchester Arena terrorist attack, which took 22 lives, injured hundreds and changed countless people’s lives forever. Today, Figen Murray OBE, mother of victim Martyn Hett, completed her walk from Manchester Arena to 10 Downing Street.
This journey marks the anniversary and aims to raise awareness about the delayed progress of Martyn’s Law (Terrorism: Protection of Premises Bill) in parliament, despite promises made in the King’s speech last November.
Figen has championed Martyn’s Law, which calls for venues to provide staff with free counter-terrorism training, conduct risk assessments, mitigate identified risks, and implement a counter-terrorism action plan. The Emergency Services Times editorial team joined Figen and many others on the final leg of her walk to show our support for this vital legislation.
At 9am this morning, a crowd of supporters began gathering at Marble Arch, accompanied by a security team and Met police officers. Soon after, Figen, Nick and the family arrived, visibly fatigued from walking nearly 200 miles in 16 days. Despite their exhaustion, everyone remained focused and ready to complete the journey, hopeful for answers from the Prime Minister.
Addressing the crowd, Figen expressed her heartfelt gratitude.
“I’m overwhelmed by the support we’ve received. It shows how much everyone wants this law. It truly means so much, and without your support, we wouldn’t have come this far. Thank you to everyone who has joined us over the last few weeks.”
Figen Murray.
Fellow campaigner Nick Aldworth announced that the Prime Minister had agreed to meet with Figen today. They hoped to learn why progress on Martyn’s Law has been so slow. He also noted that the opposition has pledged to enact Martyn’s Law if the current government fails to do so.
“This isn’t party political. It’s about making businesses and venues more secure and ensuring no parent endures the pain I experience daily.”
Figen Murray.
Walking through the rainy streets of London, Figen laid flowers at several memorials for terror attack victims, paying her respects. Numerous supporters joined her throughout the walk, including Brendan Cox, husband of murdered MP Jo Cox, and Charlotte Dixon Sutcliffe, whose husband David was killed in the Brussels Metro bombing in 2016.
Figen shared that she had waited 18 months since the Prime Minister told her in a phone call that he supported the legislation, which has yet to advance beyond the draft stage. Outside Downing Street, she said: “I’d like an answer. I’d like a date when legislation will be brought to parliament. We deserve a date.”
The emotional end to her journey saw supporters cheering as Figen stepped through the gates of Downing Street. Witnessing the collective determination to create positive change was truly inspiring and watching Figen push through those last painful steps was profoundly moving.
In a LinkedIn update this afternoon, Nick shared that they had met Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Home Secretary James Cleverly and Leader of the Opposition, Sir Keir Starmer.
“The first two gave us firm commitments that they are committed to bringing forward Martyn’s Law and the latter committed to supporting it. However, the talk was complicated by the looming shadow of an election and whether a bill can progress far enough for it to be captured in the ‘wash up’, a procedure that allows part-heard bills to move quickly between an outgoing government and an incoming government.
“So we leave UK parliament today, happy that everybody thinks Martyn’s Law should come in as quickly as possible, but with no idea about how that will happen.”
Nick Aldworth.
As we mark another anniversary, our thoughts are with all those affected by the Manchester Arena attack, hopefully this will be the last anniversary before Martyn’s Law becomes legislation.
Figen Murray spoke to Catherine Levin, Editor of Emergency Services Times about her journey from therapist to campaigner and her drive to make sure that staff in venues like the Manchester Arena can better respond when the worst happens. Read the full article here.
