Government of Jersey

Extremism, radicalisation and the Prevent strategy (FOI)

Produced by the Freedom of Information office
Authored by Government of Jersey on behalf of the States of Jersey Police and published on 11 October 2019.
Prepared internally, no external costs.

Request

How many referrals have been made to Police regarding suspected extremism / radicalisation in the past five years?

How many of the above cases have involved a mental health element?

How many times have UK Home Office accredited Intervention providers been asked to intervene during the past five years? What has been the cost of this? In this States Assembly question response:

Written Question WQ.363/2019

it says that "The aims and objectives of PREVENT are to defuse any extremism or radicalisation through the effective personalised management of an individual, to allow them to assess that their own conduct has stepped outside the boundaries of accepted behaviour, before using the criminal justice system to address that conduct."

Please can you define what type of conduct would be deemed "outside the boundaries of accepted behaviour" but not worthy of prosecution?

The response also states: "In Jersey, the approach to PREVENT is an evolving area of Police work. It is pragmatic and proportionate to reflect and respect our diverse community. In order to do so effectively, a local profile has been prepared to assist law enforcement organisations and their partners with the early identification of potential signs of extremism or radicalisation." Please provide a copy of this profile.

What are the signs of extremism or radicalisation as defined under the profile prepared by the States of Jersey Police?

Are teachers and health professionals under the employment of the Government of Jersey trained in spotting signs of extremism/radicalisation?

Response

A and B

The States of Jersey Police neither confirm nor deny whether any such referrals have been received in the last five years. Article 10(2) of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 is engaged.

The States of Jersey Police neither confirm nor deny whether the UK Home Office accredited Intervention providers been asked to intervene during the past five years. Article 10(2) of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 is engaged.

The information requested is already accessible to the applicant by other means, and therefore Article 23 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 is engaged. The information may be accessed at the following link:

Prevent Strategy

E and F

As a Counter Terrorism Local Profile outlines the threat and vulnerability from terrorism related activity locally, this information cannot be published, and the States of Jersey Police have engaged Articles 26A and 27(1) of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011.

Teachers and health professionals are subject to ongoing training by a Home Office trained and accredited police officer, in order to assist them in identifying individuals that might be susceptible to extremist views. The workshops are designed to give information regarding the Prevent process and to empower staff to act upon instincts and have the confidence to discuss matters with colleagues/supervisors and if necessary the Prevent lead for advice, discussion or assessment.

Additional contribution from Children, Young People, Education and Skills (CYPES)

There is an expectation that all staff (and volunteers) working with children and young people in Government of Jersey schools access up to date safeguarding training regularly.

Within the last two years, specific training in extremism and radicalisation has been delivered to both primary and secondary school Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) in partnership with the States of Jersey Police, Special Branch.

School leaders, education managers and Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) are also signposted to the virtual college portal where online training is available. Through the Jersey PSHE Curriculum, children and young people are taught about local and global humanitarian issues, which include themes around extremism and radicalisation. Teachers are supported by the PSHE Association with appropriate resources to use in the classroom.

The Jersey Schools Review Framework 2019 (produced by the Department for Children, Young People, Education and Skills) specially refers to protecting pupils from extremism/radicalisation. This framework applies equally to all schools and colleges maintained by the Government of Jersey through the Director General for Children, Young People, Education and Skills, and the Group Director of Education, acting for the Education Minister.

Articles Applied

10 Obligation of scheduled public authority to confirm or deny holding information

(2) If a person makes a request for information to a scheduled public authority and –

(a) the information is absolutely exempt information or qualified exempt information; or

(b) if the authority does not hold the information, the information would be absolutely exempt information or qualified exempt information if it had held it,

the authority may refuse to inform the applicant whether or not it holds the information if it is satisfied that, in all the circumstances of the case, it is in the public interest to do so.

23 Information accessible to applicant by other means

(1) Information is absolutely exempt information if it is reasonably available to the applicant, otherwise than under this Law, whether or not free of charge.

(2) A scheduled public authority that refuses an application for information on this ground must make reasonable efforts to inform the applicant where the applicant may obtain the information.

26A Information supplied by, or relating to, bodies dealing with security matters

(1) Information is absolutely exempt information if it is held by a scheduled public authority and either or both of the following apply –

(a) it was directly or indirectly supplied to the scheduled public authority by any of the bodies specified in paragraph (2); or

(b) it relates to any of those bodies.

(2) Those bodies are –

(a) the Security Service within the meaning of section 1 of the Security Service Act 1989 of the United Kingdom;

(b) the Secret Intelligence Service within the meaning of section 1 of the Intelligence Services Act 1994 of the United Kingdom;

(c) the Government Communications Headquarters within the meaning of section 3 of the Intelligence Services Act 1994 of the United Kingdom, including any unit or part of a unit of the armed forces of the Crown which is for the time being required by the Secretary of State to assist the Government Communications Headquarters in carrying out its functions;

(d) the special forces within the meaning of section 84 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 of the United Kingdom;

(e) the Tribunal established under section 65 of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 of the United Kingdom;

(f) the Tribunal established under section 7 of the Interception of Communications Act 1985 of the United Kingdom;

(g) the Tribunal established under section 5 of the Security Service Act 1989 of the United Kingdom;

(h) the Tribunal established under section 9 of the Intelligence Services Act 1994 of the United Kingdom;

(i) the Security Vetting Appeals Panel referred to in section 23(3) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 of the United Kingdom;

(j) the Security Commission referred to in section 23(3) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 of the United Kingdom;

(k) the National Criminal Intelligence Service established under section 2 of the Police Act 1997 of the United Kingdom;

(l) the Service Authority for the National Criminal Intelligence Service established under section 1 of the Police Act 1997 of the United Kingdom;

(m) the Serious Organised Crime Agency established under section 1 of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 of the United Kingdom;

(n) the National Crime Agency formed under section 1 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013 of the United Kingdom;

(o) the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament established under section 1 of the Justice and Security Act 2013 of the United Kingdom.

27 National security

(1) Information which does not fall within Article 26A(1) is absolutely exempt information if exemption from the obligation to disclose it under this Law is required to safeguard national security.