What Powers Will The Police Have During Coronavirus Lockdown?

Last night Boris Johnson announced a virtual lockdown for 3-weeks when he said, 'You must stay at home.' The prime minister warned that people would only be allowed outside to buy food or medication, to exercise once a day (alone or with household members), or to travel to work, if absolutely necessary.

He said that if you don't follow the rules, 'the police will have the powers to enforce them, including through fines and dispersing gatherings'.

The emergency Coronavirus legislation is expected to become law as soon as Thursday - the bill is to be debated in the House of Lords today and tomorrow, with the Government hoping that there will be no Lords amendments, so that it can promptly receive royal assent. It has been announced that the new powers within the Coronavirus bill will be in force for two years and subject to renewal every six months.

In the coming days, the police will possess the proper powers to enforce breaches of the new rules. Such powers may feature under the key area of 'containing and slowing the virus' in the emergency legislation, by reducing unnecessary social contact. Alternatively, the powers may come from a regulation (a statutory instrument), with mention of the Public Health (Control of Diseases) Act 1984.

The prime minister talked of police powers through fines and dispersing gatherings (of more than two people - the only two exceptions being where the gathering is of a group of people who live together and where the gathering is essential for work purposes). It is presently unknown exactly what the fines will be or indeed whether there will be grounds to justify an arrest, in certain circumstances.

It will be interesting to see whether the new controls mirror in some form the powers of the police when it comes to Penalty Notices for Disorder (PNDs - a type of fixed penalty notice that is available in England and Wales for a specified range of offences). A fixed penalty notice, initially set at £30, has been mooted.

Under Part 3 of the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and...