Inside Justice

Let’s give our leaders space and time to save the world at COP26, says Tom Wood

The manhole covers are already sealed, the dog searches are all but done, the venues are locked down and the perimeter is secured. For, six days from now, the most important group of people in the world gather in Glasgow.

The United Nations climate change conference, COP26, is being trailed as humanity’s “last best chance” to save the world for future generations. The 12-day event is quite simply the largest, most important event ever staged in the UK.

The statistics are mindboggling: 200 national delegations; upwards of 120 world leaders in personal attendance; 14,000 delegates filling the vast conference site; and, to help the UN and provide security, 10,000 police officers will be on daily duty.

The logistics of the VIP movements alone are staggering. The only thing more difficult may be getting meaningful commitments on climate change from some of the world’s worst polluters.

But at least Police Scotland have had plenty of time to plan. The Covid-enforced delay of a year will not have been wasted. You can be sure the planning has been thorough.

However, as anyone with experience of policing large events knows, the old maxim is true: no plan survives contact with reality. Last-minute changes and external factors will alter the plan hour to hour. Flexibility will be built in.

There’s already some good news.the absence of China’s President Xi Jinping, Russia’s Vladimir Putin and the Pope may well devalue the outcome of the conference but there will be no tears at police HQ. The fewer VIP movements, the better.

Ironically, it’s not the major players that cause the problem. When the US President rolls into town, he brings a large, professional team. Smaller delegations, less so.

Then there are the external factors. Predictably, some local trade unions have taken the opportunity to lever more cash by threatening strikes – so much for a showcase for Scotland!

And as well as the real VIPS, there will be legions of others. From gauche Scandi teens to media stars desperate to strut the world stage and burnish their green credentials. As always there will be a terror threat. Then there are the protesters.

It defies all logic that environmental protesters would seek to disrupt the conference so crucial to the success of their stated aim. But come and protest they will, probably in their thousands. As usual it will be a mix of the genuine, the curious and the troublemakers. Anarchist groups will not miss the chance to disrupt and spread violence.

In recent weeks, we have become used to the sight of mainly superannuated protesters, blocking the M25 while indulgent police officers look on and the traffic piles up.

Of course, there will be ample scope for peaceful demonstrations, but it is clear that attempts to block arterial routes will be given short shrift. Protesters attempting to block roads may find themselves arrested before their glue dries. Custody space across the country has been maximised and special courts will sit.

I hope the violent demonstrations fail utterly. If this really is humanity’s last best chance, our leaders deserve some peace and quiet to save the world.