BAHA-10 Response Accepted

Sight Deprivation Principles

Recommendation

Five principles on permitted sight deprivation should be consistently emphasised in JDP 1-10 and subordinate doctrine and instructions: (1) where practicable the need to deprive CPErS of their sight should be avoided in the first place; (2) there must be a genuine sensitivity about the facilities or equipment before sight deprivation can be justified; (3) sight deprivation must only be for as long as is strictly necessary; (4) sight deprivation should not become routine; (5) when sight deprivation is used, it should be noted in a record.

Published Evidence Summary
The following publicly available evidence relates to this recommendation:
- The Defence Secretary stated on 8 September 2011 that the government accepted this recommendation and stated that all five principles on permitted sight deprivation had been incorporated into JDP 1-10 and subordinate doctrine (Government Response to the Baha Mousa Inquiry, Ministry of Defence, September 2011).
- Joint Doctrine Publication 1-10 (Captured Persons) was first published on 1 October 2011, shortly after the Baha Mousa Inquiry report (8 September 2011), and has since been updated to a Fourth Edition published 28 September 2020, incorporating lessons from the Baha Mousa and Al-Sweady inquiries as well as Supreme Court judgments (JDP 1-10, Fourth Edition, Ministry of Defence, September 2020).
Sources
How was this evidence gathered?
Evidence searched by Claude (Anthropic) on 10 Apr 2026
Checked data held on this site (government responses, progress updates, independent evidence)
This recommendation applies across many organisations. The evidence above reflects central policy activity; adoption in individual organisations may vary.
Jurisdiction
UK-wide
Response
Accepted
Accepted Ministry of Defence
08 Sep 2011

The Secretary of State for Defence accepted this recommendation in principle. Statement to Parliament, 8 September 2011: 'I am accepting in principle all of [Sir William's] recommendations with one reservation.'

Read Full Response
Source
Inquiry Baha Mousa Inquiry
Report The Report of the Baha Mousa Inquiry - Volume III 08 Sep 2011
View Source
Responsible Bodies
Ministry of Defence Primary
Themes & Tags
Police misconduct sanctions Sight Deprivation Doctrine Cpers Handling
Recommendation age 14.9 yrs
Last formal update 5072 days ago