British Association of Private Security Companies

The British Association of Private Security Companies (BAPSC) was launched in February 2006 by leading members of the private security industry under the chairmanship of Andrew Bearpark. according to its charter its mission is:

to promote, enhance and regulate the interests and activities of UK-based firms and companies that provide armed security services in countries outside the UK and to represent the interests and activities of Members in matters of proposed or actual legislation.

The charter further states that:

The Association determines that it can only achieve its objectives through effective self-regulation and transparent engagement with UK Government departments and relevant International Organisations. The Association believes that it is only through effective self-regulation that the Members will enhance their position and be able to achieve differentiation from non Members in the same industry sector.

Activities

• Lobbying
• Aim to become the self-regulatory body
• Standard setting (weeding out the cowboys)
• Press relations
• Industry body (conferences, contacts)

Source

Conferences

The BAPSC held its first annual conference at Royal United Services Institute in London on 30-31 October 2006.

A second event was held at the Royal Geographical Society on 4 December 2007. one unnamed delegate provided in an insight into the Government's appetite for employing private military companies:

"Private security companies are not subject to political considerations in the same way conventional armies are. Plus you don't necessarily have to flag up money you spend on hiring mercenaries. It doesn't necessarily appear in the official defence budget," he said.

"Most importantly, if a private security contractor is killed on active duty, you don't get any body bag pictures on the front pages. That means no bad publicity for the government."

A number of speakers at the conference called for the Government to regulate the industry:

The British government in particular is now required to reach rapid conclusions on the regulatory challenges for the UK industry. In his opening remarks, the BAPSC’s Director General, Andy Bearpark, made that unmistakably clear: “Any commercial company that spends six years thinking about something would no longer be a successful commercial company”.

In his Welcome Address, Sir Malcolm Rifkind called on HMG and other international governments “to do something to regulate the industry”. He made it clear that the concerns of many NGOs are legitimate and that their objectives are the same as those of the industry – despite a different analysis of the situation..

Rifikind's remark may be a reference to War on Want, which issued a critical report on the industry, timed to coincide with the conference, which also called for government regulation.

Criticisms

Ex-SAS soldier and security advisor Bob Shepherd has suggested that allowing British private military companies to self-regulate is "tantamount to allowing Afghan drug traffickers to police the border with Pakistan."

BASPC's idea of national regulation is limited to 'an ombudsman in a government depertment ' charged with collecting, investigating and processing complaints against CSCs [commercial security companies]. The administration of punishment, however, would still fall to the BASPC.

Shepherd suggested that the BASPC had failed to police at least one of its members effectively in relation to the safety provisions of its charter.

the commercial security company that I resigned from in 2006 is a BAPSC member; the same CSC which failed to provide its CP team on the ground with weapons or an armoured vehicle for over a year; the same CSC which time and again dispatched CP advisers to Kabul who had no background whatsoever in Close Protection; the same CSC which advised me to allow the client to pursue dangerous activities in order to keep the contract..

Role in Iraq

In February 2008, a major conference in Dubai brought together the Iraqi and Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the business community. The conference aimed to develop business deals, but these have to be guaranteed by "security". Ahead of the conference it was reported that discussions dealing with the later were to be overseen by "Private Security Company Association of Iraq (PSCAI) and the British Association of Private Security Companies (BAPSC)", and "these organisations will be participating within the summit programme, making contributions as two of the leading associations for the private security sector, ensuring that the industry is able to put its perspective across in addition to that of the Iraqi Government."

People

• Andrew Bearpark Director General
• Penny Beels Deputy Director General
• Sabina Schulz Director of Policy

Membership

Erinys announces it has left the British Association of Private Security Companies, January 2009

Until eary 2009 BAPSC had 6 full members along with a larger number of provisional and associate members. Together they comprise many of the key British companies in the sector. In January 2009 Erinys International left the organisation.

Full members

• Aegis Defense Services | ArmorGroup International PLC | Control Risks Group | Erinys UK Ltd | Janusian Security Risk Management | Olive Group

Provisional members

• Assured Risks Ltd | Blue Hackle Group Ltd | Britam Defence Ltd | Centurion | Clearwater Projects | Edinburgh International | Global Strategies Group (United Kingdom) | Maritime Asset Security and Training (MAST) Ltd | Oriel Solutions Ltd | Page Protective Services Ltd | Saladin Security Ltd | Sion Resources Limited | Securiforce International Ltd | Team Fusion | Team Savant Ltd

Associate members

• C&L International
• CommuniCorp
• Crucial Genetics
• Expedition Kit
• Global Training Solutions
• Integro (formerly Humphreys Haggas Sutton)
• March Security
• Minimal Risk Ltd
• New York Bay International
• Peters & May
• Prometheus Medical Ltd
• PSC Legal
• THB Clowes

Connections

• RUSI Hosted first annual conference.
• Ten Alps Publishing Published first yearbook.

References, Resources and Contact

Contact

British Association of Private Security Companies

17 Queen Anne's Gate

Westminister, London SW1H 9BU

phone: 44 (0)20 7123 4567

fax: 44(0)20 7123 4568

Website: www.BAPSC.org.uk

Resources

• Private Security Company Association of Iraq (PSCAI) Competing group, but for Iraq only.
• New British Association of Private Security Companies (BAPSC) for armed security services, Security Par, 8 February 2006.
• Royal United Services Institute, Conference Announcement: The RUSI - BAPSC First Annual Conference (British Association of Private Security Companies), 30 Oct - 31 Oct 2006.
• Rise of private security companies in Iraq creates regulatory quandary, USAToday, 7 May 2006.
• Mercenary bill ‘unreasonable’, Business Day (South Africa), 23 May 2006.
• Boyd Webb, Mercenary bill shot down in parliament, IOL (South Africa), 23 May 2006.
• Max Hastings, We must fight our instinctive distaste for mercenaries, The Guardian, 2 August 2006.