Martyn's Law passes through House of Lords
The bill, named after a victim of the Manchester Arena bombing, aims to better protect people from terror attacks
A proposed law that aims to help prevent and reduce the harm of terror attacks at event venues is a tribute to victims of the Manchester Arena bombing and other atrocities, a Home Office minister has said.
Lord Hanson of Flint also told Parliament the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill "will help save lives".
The Labour frontbencher made his comments as the legislation cleared the House of Lords and heads back to the Commons for MPs to consider amendments made before going for royal assent.
Known as Martyn's Law, it will compel all UK venues that expect 200 or more people to be on site to prepare for the event of a terror attack, such as establishing evacuation plans.
Larger premises expected to host 800 people or more would also have to take steps to reduce their vulnerability to an assault.
Figen Murray campaigned for the law change after her 29-year-old son Martyn Hett was killed, with 21 other people, in the Manchester Arena bombing at the end of an Ariana Grande concert in May 2017.
The atrocity also left more than a thousand people injured.
During its passage through the upper chamber, the Government saw off Conservative attempts to increase the capacity thresholds at which the venues would have to comply with measures in the Bill.
Tory peers had raised concerns over the financial and administrative burdens the requirements would place on smaller community venues, especially those run by volunteers.
Speaking at third reading, Lord Hanson said: "This Bill has its genesis in the evening of May 22 2017 in the Manchester Arena, where more than 1,000 people were injured and 22 were killed in a terror attack - the sole responsibility of the terrorist involved.
"This Bill is a tribute to those victims and to the victims of other terrorist attacks. They will never ever be forgotten."
He added: "Members will be aware, of course, of the campaigning work of Figen Murray and her team. We would not be here today without her and her team, and I give them my thanks.
"This Bill will now be known as Martyn's law in memory of Figen's son Martyn, who died in that Manchester terror attack.
"I also pay tribute to the security and intelligence services, law enforcement and others, who work day in and day out to protect this country from the ongoing threat of terrorism, and to the first responders who are on the front line, if and when the worst happens."
The minister's Tory counterpart, Lord Davies of Gower, said: "The effectiveness of this legislation will be determined not by the words on the page alone but by how well it is put into practice.
"Adequate resources, training and advice must be provided to ensure that compliance is achievable and that security measures are implemented effectively without unnecessary complexity or confusion."
He added: "The Bill represents a significant and necessary step in our ongoing efforts to protect the public from the scourge of terrorism.
"While no legislation can eliminate it entirely, we have a duty to take every reasonable measure to mitigate threats and to ensure that venues and public spaces are as prepared as possible.
"The Bill is a tribute to those who have tragically lost their lives to terrorism, and a testament to our resolve that we will do all we can to prevent future tragedies."
Liberal Democrat Baroness Hamwee said: "The Bill will not stop terrorism but has a very important part to play in the response to it, and we are pleased that challenges to the Bill have been resisted."