Simon Tasker is GSA Global’s newly appointed senior manager whose recent experience leading the specialist protection teams at New Scotland Yard bolsters the rich heritage of international security, risk and investigation capability that is the hallmark of GSA Global.
For me, the past six months have flown by. From the cold autumn day stepping out of Royalty and Specialist Protection (RaSP) Headquarters in London leaving 31 years’ police service behind me, to this warm spring day leading Protective Services for GSA Global, time seems to have passed in the blink of an eye.
I was incredibly fortunate to have worked alongside some highly skilled protection colleagues during my time with RaSP. The capability, desire and lightness of touch needed to deliver protection to the world’s most high-profile people, often at memorable junctures in our national history is something special that I am proud to have been a part of.
The pinnacle of my RaSP career was to have held the responsibility as protection coordinator for Operation London Bridge (Death of HM Queen Elizabeth II), which was for me as daunting, as it was reassuring, to know those that doing this alongside me were up to the task of bringing nearly two hundred world leaders into London, over a continuous ten day period, for the commemorative events that followed.
Something that I have found harder to reconcile in the private sector, however, is the tendency of some Principals to fall in thrall to a style of protection that is ‘hype and Hollywood’ – the overzealous people handling by some CP operatives, the absence of effective communication and the curious desire to constantly invade the personal space of their Principal. It is for all of us who care about what we do – whether private or public – to resist this fashion and ensure standards don’t slip. The use of physical force is always contentious and merits consideration about what is reasonable. The case to apply physical force in a CP operational context may well be made out, and should not be avoided, where it’s use is proportionate, lawful and necessary.
Remember though, that the handling of people physically will need justification by the person applying the force, remembering as we all should, that there is no exemption, nor carte blanche to simply physically move someone. A sound rationale, dynamic risk assessment of the circumstances at the time, subsequent note-making and being prepared to explain your actions to the Principal will all be required. Action by an overzealous CP operative inevitably by association impacts the client, i.e. the very person they are protecting, and is usually reported (especially in ubiquitous social media) in a negative way.
I emphasise effective communication as this is a fundamental pillar of good CP. Good body positioning in relation to your Principal, an understanding of messaging and signals indicating distress or discomfort by them, and a good horizon scan of the environment will Principal, but again good planning through effective liaison with a venue host, security lead at the venue, or good tactical use of your SAP (Advance) will help, tremendously.
Thankfully, I have had the privilege of working with some incredibly competent protection operators in my short time in the private sector at GSA Global. Professional standards, discipline and the desire to be the best you can are all on show. For me, maximum effort is the minimum requirement.
The private sector market for protection and wider protective services looks buoyant and set to remain that way, as expressions of opinion, and political language and tone become more polarising. The spectre of threats and risks has never felt closer or more personal. Thank goodness then, that standards of those in the private sector charged with providing close protection to clients remain high, and I am proud, on behalf of GSA Global, to be doing our part to keep it that way.
