Other Agencies

Army - (42 North West) Brigade

Defence contributes to UK resilience though the provision of a number of guaranteed niche capabilities such as Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) and Search and Rescue (SAR), and a process of augmenting civil authorities and structures when civil capability or capacity is exceeded.  Military assistance could be requested in response to a wide range of contingencies and emergencies during peace, periods of tension, crisis and war.  It is conducted under the umbrella title of “UK Operations” which encompasses Military Aid to the Civil Authorities (MACA).  MACA may be requested because the Armed Forces’ structure, organisation, skills, equipment and training can be of benefit in time of emergency to fill civil authority capability gaps.  However it should be understood that the Armed Forces are funded for defence purposes and the responsibility for dealing with civil emergencies clearly lies with the civil authorities.  That said, the Armed Forces may be requested to assist the civilian authorities when there is a threat to life, or when the community is in danger of being deprived of the essentials of life.

The provision of MACA is guided by three principles:

• Military aid should normally be the last resort.  The use of mutual aid, other agencies, and the private sector must be otherwise considered as insufficient or be unsuitable.
• The Civil Authority lack the required level of capability to fulfil the task and it is unreasonable or prohibitively expensive to expect it to develop one.
• The Civil Authority has a capability, but the need to act is urgent and it lacks readily available resources.

MACA could fall under the auspices of Military Aid to the Civil Community (Category A – Emergency) (MACC Cat A), Military Aid to the Civil Police (MACP) or Military Aid to other Government Departments (MAGD).  Local military can respond directly to requests for MACC Cat A assistance whilst MACP and MAGD requests require Ministerial approval.  During an emergency situation, the military may be able to assist with some of the following specialist and non-specialist tasks: command, control and communications (C3) infrastructure support; reconnaissance; search assistance; evacuation tasks; engineering tasks; cordon control; logistic and administrative support including transport lift;  and other general duty tasks.  Specialist logistics expertise can also be made available to advise Strategic Co-ordinating Groups.

HQ 42 (North West) Brigade, located at Preston, is the regional brigade responsible for the tri-Service planning and co-ordination of UK Operations in the North West of England.  During an emergency situation, early contact should be established with HQ 42 (North West) Brigade who will assist in processing MACA requests and co-ordinate the military response.