Member

76: Schedule 4, page 94, line 11, at end insert— “(4A) Section 117 (reasonable use of force) is to be read as if at the end there were inserted—“(2) Authorised investigators exercising powers under section 109D may only use reasonable force, if necessary, against items and property, not against persons.(3) Nothing in subsection (2) restricts the power of a police constable to use reasonable force, if necessary, when exercising powers under section 109D Social Security Administration Act 1992.””Member’s explanatory statement This amendment would prohibit DWP authorised officers from using force against people during the exercise of their entry, search and seizure powers, reflecting the policy intention in the Explanatory notes to the Bill. It preserves their power to use force against things – such as locked filing cabinets – and preserves police use of force, if necessary, under a DWP warrant.