Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to tackle Security Industry Authority licences being issued fraudulently.

Under the provisions of the Private Security Industry Act 2001, the Security Industry Authority (SIA) is responsible for licensing individuals who operate in designated sectors of the private security industry. The SIA has procedures in place to ensure that licences are not issued fraudulently and that private security operatives are 'fit and proper' persons who are properly trained and qualified to do their job. Before issuing a licence, the SIA undertakes checks to verify an individual’s identity, their age, whether they have completed the required level of training and whether they have a criminal record. Since 2012, the SIA has taken action against more than 1,300 licence holders who have used fraudulent qualifications to gain an SIA licence.