A GOVERNMENT minister said she found responses to the Ask for Angela venue safety scheme “wanting” after going undercover at venues across Britain.

The programme, introduced in 2016, allows vulnerable individuals to discreetly seek help at bars, clubs and events by using the code word Angela at participating venues with trained staff.

Safeguarding minister Jess Phillips said she routinely tested the scheme and determined the responses to be entirely unsatisfactory.

She told the BBC: “I have to say, I have always found the response wanting.”

Her comments came after a BBC investigation found that most participating venues failed to implement the scheme properly.

The broadcaster said researchers tested 25 venues, posing as a couple on a date, with a female researcher approaching bar staff appearing distressed and asking for Angela, with staff at more than half of the venues completely unaware of what the code word meant.

Ms Phillips said: “None of these schemes are ever fit for purpose if [staff] are not trained properly.

“New laws, things written down on fancy scrolls that sit in the basement of the House of Commons — that’s meaningless if you don’t implement things properly on the ground.”