Police given warning on ‘overzealous’ virus tactics
Top officer says forces’ behaviour during lockdown will be remembered by the public ‘for years to come’
22,141 CORONAVIRUS CASES IN UK +13.4%
1,415 DEATHS
‘Police officers are citizens in uniform, not members of a disciplined hierarchy’
ONE of Britain’s most senior police officers has told colleagues their handling of the coronavirus crisis will be remembered for generations, as he urges the public not to “judge too harshly” following criticism of some forces’ tactics.
Writing in today’s Daily Telegraph, Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu says officers must preserve “the trust and confidence of the public” and maintain the tradition of “policing by consent” amid complaints about the “overzealous” enforcement of social distancing regulations.
In a series of incidents over the weekend, police forces fined individuals £60 for buying “non-essential” goods from shops and for going out for a drive “due to boredom”.
Smaller shops claim to have been told that selling Easter eggs and hot cross buns goes against new guidance because they are not essential items.
Mr Basu, the country’s head of counter-terror policing, says that “not every police response will be sure-footed”, but adds that “we should not judge too harshly”, as police have been handed powers that he “never imagined a British police officer would be asked to use”.
He writes: “Everyone in policing is acutely aware that how we police this pandemic will be remembered for many years to come.”
In what will be seen as a tacit appeal to colleagues, he urges forces to heed the calls by two of Britain’s most senior officers – Dame Cressida Dick, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, and Martin Hewitt, chairman of the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) – that persuading and educating the public should be the primary goal, rather than resorting to enforcement.
The Government also issued figures showing that the lockdown was working in the fight against the spread of the virus. Train journeys, hospital admissions and the rate of new infections are all falling or stabilising.
Others have criticised the police for their approach towards those seen to be breaking the lockdown.
Lord Sumption, a former justice of the Supreme Court, accused police of acting like “glorified school prefects”.
Citing Derbyshire police’s use of drones to stop walkers, Lord Sumption said the police were traditionally “citizens in uniform”, not “members of a disciplined hierarchy operating at the Government’s command”. “This is what a police state is like,” he said.
Government rules say people must only go out to shop for necessities “as infrequently as possible”; to exercise once a day; to meet a medical need; or to travel to work. However, data gathered by The Telegraph showed continued apparent confusion and wide variations in interpretations of the regulations by forces, with Lancashire fining 123 people, against none by forces such as Leicestershire and Wiltshire.
Police chiefs are reportedly drawing up guidance warning officers not to overreach their powers. The NPCC and College of Policing are rushing through guidelines reminding forces they cannot bar people from going for a run or a drive under emergency powers, according to The Guardian.
Dame Cressida said she had told Metropolitan Police officers not to use roadblocks and to use enforcement powers only as a last resort. “We are all getting used to the new restrictions and I’ve been very clear that in the first instance I want my officers to be engaging with people, talking to people, encouraging them to comply,” she said.
Dominic Raab, the Foreign Secretary, said some common sense was needed in the approach, but that he supported the police fully.
Everyone is acutely aware that how we police this pandemic will be remembered for years
Some of the bravest men and women I know put themselves at risk every day to protect us
As the son of a GP and a nurse, and the brother of an NHS consultant currently working on the frontline, I will do everything possible to help protect the courageous men and women of the NHS – albeit with powers I never imagined a British police officer would be asked to use.
Everyone in policing is acutely aware that how we police this pandemic will be remembered for many years to come. The two most important police officers in the country, Cressida Dick, the Met Police Commissioner, and Martin Hewitt, the chairman of the National Police Chiefs’ Council, have both made it clear that persuasion and education to do the right thing is our primary goal.
Preserving the trust and confidence of the public in policing by consent is our mantra and has been since 1829. There will be a period of readjustment to our new responsibilities, which no police officer ever thought they would have. Not every police response will be surefooted and some will spark healthy debate.
We should not judge too harshly. Some of the bravest men and women I know put themselves at risk every day to protect all of us. And they do so now, not only to arrest terrorists, murderers, drug dealers and gangsters, but also to persuade us rightly to obey the Government’s directions designed to halt the spread of Covid-19, protect the NHS and save lives.
Some of the most compassionate men and women I know are attending Covid-19 deaths in the community, alongside their fire and ambulance colleagues. Their aim is to make sure our loved ones, cruelly taken from us too early, are treated with as much dignity as possible.
These people are our British police officers and they continue to protect us from harm even as most of society has to shut down. I salute them – and the police staff who keep the frontline safe and supported. We all should.
Last Thursday, I was out on my doorstep crying and clapping with the rest of my street for our medical superheroes. But I have reserved some of my tears and applause for my other 999 colleagues, our soldiers and especially those most dear to me – my police brothers and sisters up and down this United Kingdom.