Regulation of the private security industry

Abstract

The private security industry is likely to have a large and continuing role in the Britain of the 1990s; but it has been almost completely unregulated and unaccountable. In this article, the authors describe the nature and scope of the industry and some reasons why it has grown so dramatically during the past four decades. There follows a discussion of some deficiencies of the industry, including criminality, poor pay and conditions, lack of adequate training, and the lack of accountability. The article concludes with a review of various forms of regulation, and argues that the only acceptable form is public licensing, under Home Office control.