Guidance or Law? A Proposal to Address the Misguided Use of Police Powers and Fixed Penalty Notices Under Emergency Powers in England

A commentary on the application of Fixed Penalty Notices during the COVID-19 pandemic under emergency powers in England, considering the failings therein in relation to the dissemination, or lack thereof, of consistent guidance information from legislators down to front-line law enforcement officers. This article is written for legislators of the future in an attempt to aid in preventing the confusion, inconsistent approach and undue criminalisation of members of the public experienced in England during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is the ultimate position of this article that an inherent problem existed in the policing of the pandemic and use of the regulations which started with the lack of guidance material published in tandem with the regulations to law enforcement officers and starts to form a proposal for change going forward.