UK Law on head covering in public places

What is the law in the UK with a covered face in the UK? Things like Bike Helmets, Balaclavas, etc. In a supermarket or shopping center?

I googled it and found an article about a bill in 2014 about petrol stations but nothing really concrete.

 

A friend got into an argument with a security guard today at Tesco for refusing to remove his helmet, (he had it flipped up). I was under the impression any head coverings in public had to be removed but couldn't find the law to back it up.

 

Law of the land aside, as Tesco is a private company they have ROAR on dress code and deportment so he doesn't have much of an argument

 

His argument was during store opening hours the store is a public place and he won't be told what to do in public.

 

It isn't though - it is private property and your friend has no case

 

I'm rusty on my UK law, but as far as I'm aware there are fairly specific limitations in which a section 60a can be applied. Predominantly, such use of authority (if memory serves) is typically reserved for cases where there is "imminent potential" for violence and/or public disorder (such as riots).

Outside of that, I do believe the police have very limited powers to actively remove headgear/covers in a public place.

This of course changes drastically when you're on private property (such as banks) where they may have their own rules & the laws work differently. And I'm not 100% sure on the procedure if someone is actually arrested. Mushroom should be able to clarify on that one further.

I'm pretty sure that's loosely accurate, though it's been a couple of years since I brushed up on the statutes and I admit I may have gotten some details wrong.

Doesn't work. As Hannibal pointed out, Tesco is basically private property in the same way railway stations and banks are. That they have public access does not stop it being private property and the staff, acting on behalf of the company at that time, do have the right to complain.

 

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1972/71/section/33

The law see it as public.

 

You might want to check more recent statutes on that one, but I do believe that one has been amended to include a variety of exemptions. Gimme a few minutes, I'll see if I can find the relevant bits.

 

The law is the reason why you can be arrested for having an offensive weapon in a public place no? Wheras you can have one on a private property.

 

That is specific to that legislation and application of the CJA/POA - it does not cover the rights of the individual vs the premises/property owner

 

Bit of a false equivalence, isn't it?

 

No, I can't walk into my neighbours house with a machete and then tell the police I'm on private property so they can't touch me.

Shops belong to the business owners, even though some public order offences may apply to them as public spaces, and they don't have an obligation to allow anyone in, as long as they are not breaking anti-discrimination laws.

That's AFAIK, anyway.

 

I'm relaying his arguments and links via Whatsapp not mine.

 

Ah, gotcha.

But no, you can't "simply" have a weapon on private property and that's it. In every case, you'd need the permission from the owner to have that weapon there at least as a minimum.

Going into a bank or a railway station with a weapon (for example, which is private property) isn't the same as having a weapon in the privacy of your own home.

 

His new argument is "Being privately owned and being a public place are not mututally exclusive". (talking about the legislation that classifies tesco as public)

 

That's true, but "public place" is not the same as "public property".

 

He says the law doesn't have any relevance to this aside from what he personally considers a public place, I.E. areas in which he can get done for indecent exposure, wearing a helmet that doesn't cover his face isn't against the law, it isn't against their company policy either excluding petrol pumps.

I should add, after the argument with the security guard, a manager was called over and told him he can keep his helmet on and the "overzealous" guard wasn't very pleased.

 

Then problem solved, really. The security guard wasn't outside the bounds of the law by asking him to remove his helmet (presumably for security purposes). But if the manager said it was fine, then it was fine.

:dunno: