The UK government is extending police support to people active in politics who do not currently sit in the House of Commons. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced in Parliament on 12 October 2026 that the change was taking effect immediately. She also announced an independent review of the state’s arrangements for protecting people in public life.
The Home Office, the government department responsible for policing and domestic security, lists the groups covered by the expanded support as party leaders who are not MPs, members of the House of Lords — Parliament’s upper chamber — former MPs, former members of the devolved legislatures and political party spokespeople. According to Mahmood’s statement, the support will include access to a designated police officer and help with wider security measures.
This does not mean that everyone in those groups will receive permanent personal protection. The decision concerns contact with the police and assistance with security arrangements, rather than an automatic allocation of bodyguards to all those covered.
Review to examine people, buildings and risk assessment
The independent review will be led by Sir Stephen Lovegrove, a former national security adviser. According to the Home Office announcement, it will assess whether existing safeguards match the threats, how funding and protective resources are used, and whether decisions based on threat and risk assessments are consistent.
Its scope will extend beyond the protection of parliamentarians. It will cover people at particular risk, including members of the Royal Family, ministers, MPs, local government representatives and other prominent figures in British politics. Security at government buildings and diplomatic premises will also be examined. The review will assess the system as a whole, rather than consider individual cases.
Mahmood said the work would consider physical threats, online risks and threats associated with social polarisation. People in public life will be consulted as part of the process. The review is intended to complement separate work by Sir Robert Buckland on the murder of MP Sir David Amess and MPs’ safety in their constituencies.
In her statement to Parliament, Mahmood said a report would be presented within six months. The press announcement also notes that the detailed scope and timetable must be agreed with Lovegrove. The immediate change is therefore the expansion of police support; the review’s recommendations and any further changes to the protection system are still to come.
