Police in England issue fines as citizens ordered to stay home
Overzealous enforcement worries critics
When police spotted a car full of people travelling through Greater Manchester they promptly pulled the vehicle over and ordered the occupants to return home at once or risk a fine for breaching the national lockdown rules.
The move was an example of officers using their draconian new powers to restrict all non-essential travel throughout the U.K. and prevent the further spread of COVID-19.
Rather than reckless joyriders, the car contained a group of key workers on their way to a night shift at a major supermarket, but they were unable to persuade the officers of their credentials.
As constabularies across the country come to grips with the powerful new legislation at their disposal, numerous examples have emerged of officers wielding the laws with such zeal that critics have suggested Britain is in danger of becoming a police state.
In the days after Boris Johnson announced the shutdown, confusion reigned. Travelling to the Lake District or Cornwall in your camper van was out, but regular exercise in the open air was permitted.
The legislation empowering the police to uphold the public health safety restrictions ought to have provided some clear guidance.
But with 43 forces seemingly interpreting the law in a multitude of different ways, the picture seems even more confused than ever.
There are now mounting fears that the country’s “policing by consent” model could be severely damaged — as could long-term trust in the police.
Derbyshire Police have been among the most enthusiastic of forces when it comes to applying the new law. They deployed drones to monitor areas of the Peak District National Park.
The force said the advice it issued to the public “was in line with national government advice and echoed what people in our communities were saying.”
The force also put dye into a lake at a beauty spot to dissuade people from swimming there.
In Warrington, Cheshire, police boasted of issuing summonses to people who had been shopping for “non-essential” items.
In the Halton Brook area of Runcorn, the local constabulary tweeted: “Nipping to the shop for a paper, or a scratch card is not an essential reason to be out of the house.”
Elsewhere, in Cheshire a man was prevented from exercising his dog in his own field because it was a fiveminute trip from his house.
In another part of the country there were reports of officers in a pharmacy going through customers’ baskets to remove “non-essential items.”
James Lowman from the Association of Convenience Stores, said it was a worrying development that was adding to confusion.
In Blackburn, Lancashire police issued a 60-pound ($105) fine to a man who claimed he was exercising when he was spotted outside smoking a cigarette.
The force on Monday said it had issued 123 fines for breaches of the rules.
In contrast, Wiltshire police said they had not issued any fines yet. The definition of what constitutes exercise was also a matter of debate on the south coast where an angler on Brighton Beach was sent packing by Sussex police. The man was told fishing was a non-essential activity.
In Raynes Park, west London, the police approached some people who sat on the grass. When asked by the officers what they were doing, they claimed they were sitting down after finishing their exercise, but were informed that was not allowed.
A spokesman for No. 10 Downing denied there was confusion about the law and said: “The rules set out what we need to do, which is that there should not be gatherings of more than two people from different households and people should stay two metres apart.
“It is the job of government to publish the regulations, to set out clear sets of instructions — I believe we have done that and it is up to the police to exercise discretion.”
In North Yorkshire, officers were stopping cars with more than one occupant and checking whether the journeys were justified.
Among the excuses given to officers were: “I needed to deliver a lawn mower,” “I needed to pick up a puppy,” “I wanted to go for a walk in the countryside,” “I wanted to visit my mother,” and “The local vets are not open and I need to go to one in Lancashire.”
But while critics have been quick to accuse the police of wielding their new powers too zealously, there have also been examples of the public behaving in thoughtless, reckless ways.
In Hertfordshire, Stevenage police stopped a vehicle in a leisure park and were told by the driver that he was in the area playing Pokemon Go.
In Brighton a 65-year-old man was jailed for 12 weeks for spitting in the faces of three officers and in Northampton a 30-year-old man was charged with spitting at a special constable and claiming to be infected with COVID-19.