Key Facts

• Amendment would require police to direct individuals testing positive for controlled drugs to appropriate drug diversion services.
• Government has committed £300 million over two or three years to create 54,500 extra drug treatment places.
• There are now liaison and diversion officers in custody settings and many courts to help identify substance abuse issues.
• Police time freed by NHS picking up mental health cases: more than a million hours.
• Drug testing on arrest is being expanded to locations outside of custody.
• The power allows police to test individuals aged 18 or over who have been arrested for an offence, provided the officer requests a sample and feels it appropriate.
• Only non-intimate samples like swabs or saliva can be taken if drug testing occurs outside of police detention.
• Testing is permitted only when someone has been arrested for a relevant trigger offence or another offence where drug misuse is suspected by an inspector.
• Drug testing powers were originally introduced under the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000.
• Clauses 15 to 17 expand police powers to test for any specified controlled drug, not just class A drugs.
• There are concerns about a lack of capacity within local police forces to implement these measures effectively.
• The national partnership agreement aims to better address mental health crises by directing appropriate medical responses rather than police intervention.
• Amendment 133 aims to insert a new section in the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984.
• Drug deaths have doubled since 2021.
• The Health and Social Care Act 2012 transferred responsibility for drug treatment services to local authorities.
• Phillips challenges the idea that current forensic testing capacity exists to process swabs from individuals in custody.
• She references a case where lab results took seven months for a crime victim.
• Phillips questions whether the drug-testing process could be as efficient as airport security screenings.
• Only 50% of police are trained on coercive control.
• Women in prison or substance misuse services often have a history of domestic abuse or sexual violence.
• Drug use can be seen as a mitigating factor for perpetrators but an aggravation for victims.
• The NHS is receiving an extra £3.3 billion this year.
• Mental health ambulances and places of safety are being invested in.
• Implementation is happening on a force-by-force basis across regions.
• On-the-spot drug tests take between 13 and 35 minutes.
• Non-intrusive tests include hair (excluding pubic hair), saliva, and a swab from non-intimate areas.
• These tests do not meet the evidentiary threshold for criminal prosecutions but can be used in decisions about bail or diversionary cautions.
• The Government invested hundreds of millions of pounds over three years to create 55,000 extra treatment places.
• Amendment 32 addresses the inclusion of appeals in the final determination of an application under clause 18(8)(b).
• The discussion involves the Criminal Justice Bill, specifically Clause 18.
• No specific funding or timeline is mentioned.
• Knife crime hospital admissions have fallen by 26% since December 2019.
• Police currently lack the power to seize knives unless they are to be used as evidence in an investigation or are inherently illegal.
• Chief Constable Gavin Stephens supports this measure as a preventive tool against knife violence.
• Clause 18 allows constables to seize bladed or sharply pointed items if they are lawfully on a premise and believe these items might be connected to unlawful violence.
• The standard form for property seized will also apply to weapons under this provision.
• 'Just' in clause 18(7)(b) refers back to the test set out in clause 18(1)(c).
• Amendment 61 aligns powers in Clause 19 with Section 18 of PACE.
• Section 18 of PACE allows entry and search without prior authorisation under certain conditions.
• The amendment aims to provide consistency for officers and clarity for the public.
• Amendment 61 aims to fine-tune the detail for identifying stolen goods without prior authorization from an inspector.
• Clause 19 allows police officers to retrieve stolen goods more efficiently.
• The Government believes prior authorisation by an inspector is necessary because it relates to stolen goods rather than individuals.
• Amendment 59 requires the College of Policing to issue a code of practice under section 39A of the Police Act 1996.
• The amendment aims to clarify the narrow circumstances in which the power should be used.
• There are concerns about the accuracy and precision of technology for locating stolen items.
• Review of police powers is proposed to occur within two years.
• Updating PACE code B is a statutory requirement under section 66.
• Post-legislative review happens three to five years after Royal Assent.
• Clause 19(2) sets out when the power can be used.
• Conditions include reasonable grounds to believe items are stolen and on specified premises.
• Police must also show it is not reasonably practicable to obtain a warrant without frustrating or seriously prejudicing its purpose.
• Clause 20 and schedule 3 create a new power for law enforcement agencies.
• Court orders can be applied for by entities listed in paragraph 12 of the schedule, including staff at least the grade of executive director from the Gambling Commission.
• The measure targets criminal activities such as fraud and malware dissemination.
• The provisions allow for suspending IP addresses and domain names for up to 12 months following an application to a judge.
• Four criteria must be met for the suspension: conditions 1, 3, and 4 are straightforward; condition 2 is complex and involves four scenarios including UK persons using the address for serious crime or being victims of such crimes.
• Judges can require individuals whose domain names or IP addresses are suspended not to disclose this information.