Corporatism has no place in the police
Yesterday four men received honours at Buckingham Palace for their response to the June 2017 terror attack at London Bridge: Pc Charlie Guenigault, Pc Wayne Marques, Pc Leon Mcleod and, posthumously, Ignacio Echeverria. Mr Echeverria, a 39-year-old banker, was neither trained nor armed for such a situation – and yet his instinct when the attack occurred was to rush to someone’s defence. The contrast with Deputy Commissioner Sir Craig Mackey, who locked himself in his car during the 2017 Westminster attack, is stark. Sir Craig, it should be noted, said it was his instinct to get out and help but he was unarmed and following protocol. But his lack of action, no matter how clearly reasoned, has become for many a symbol of institutional impotence.
What truly matters to the modern police force? It is said that not only are some local forces not investigating reported crimes, West Yorkshire Police has actually set targets for screening them out. Meanwhile, resources have been diverted towards historic sex cases, probing journalists and recording so-called hate crime. The citation for the knighthood of Sir Craig reveals so much. He was commended for reducing stop-and-search – albeit while increasing the arrest rate – and overseeing a dramatic improvement in the recruitment of officers from minority backgrounds. Yes, diversifying the force can be a very good thing and the case for and against stop-and-search is full of controversy, but it’s interesting to note what the political establishment now regards as worthy of a knighthood when it comes to policing: reflecting the prevailing obsessions of the liberal elite.
The primary responsibility of the police is not to advance social justice and equality but to keep us safe. That, of course, is what the vast majority of officers want to do, and the ceremony at the palace yesterday was an important reminder of that. Nor is anyone denying that Sir Craig may well have served his uniform well down the years. But the police are showing signs of the invasion of a corporate culture and its attendant obsessions with political correctness and public outreach. The job is indeed a highly visible one: the public wants to see officers walking the beat, deterring criminals. It desperately wants to have respect for the organisation and confidence that it understands its prime mission. At present, the police are jeopardising their historic reputation.