Brexit: UK cops draw up plans for riots and civil disorder
LONDON: British police have drawn up anti-riot plans as a contingency in case there is violence on the country's borders on and around Brexit day on March 29, 2019.
The document, prepared by the National Police Coordination Centre, warns that the "necessity to call on military assistance is a real possibility" in the weeks around Britain's formal departure from the European Union (EU), the Sunday Times reported.
The report, which is due to be discussed at a meeting of the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) next week, claims that "widespread leave embargoes" will be required. Some forces, such as Kent, are expected unilaterally to cancel rest days and leaves immediately after March 29 next year.
The document also warns that a no-deal Brexit, or the lack of an arrangement with the EU on a future relationship once Britain is a non-member of the economic bloc, could lead to a rise in crime, particularly theft and robbery, as Britain suffers food and drug shortages with the "expectation that more people will become ill".
The leaked document, marked 'Confidential', warns that the ability of forces to plan for a no-deal Brexit is being "undermined by a perceived lack of communication between the policing unit of the Home Office and the Department for Exiting the European Union". It warns that the "predominant" concern for the police is that food and goods shortages, including NHS supplies, will result in "civil disorder leading to widespread unrest," the newspaper said.
The report adds: "There is an expectation that crime not directly connected to Brexit will rise, as acquisitive crime will habitually rise in the event of restricted availability of goods".
The document also warns that Operation Stack the queuing system for lorries waiting to cross the Channel when traffic is disrupted will have to be "enacted in every UK port" requiring a "heavy police commitment".
It added, "If Stack is introduced across the country, the disruption to the national road network will be unprecedented and overwhelming". The revelation comes as the government prepares this week to publish the final set of reports on the possible consequences of a nodeal Brexit.