The Metropolitan Police “didn’t get everything right” in policing recent large-scale protests, as a new report reveals the impact caused on tourism, retail and public service finances.
A new report found that two thirds of people would drop plans with small children if a protest was taking place, with the force’s assistant commissioner saying that arrests for disruptive individuals could have been made sooner.
Matt Twist, who is responsible for protest and public order policing across London, also said the force used an “infinite number of tiers of policing” in response to criticisms of the Met adopting a ‘two-tier’ stance.
A series of groups have held frequent protests and counter-protests since October last year, including environmental campaigns by Just Stop Oil and Extinction Rebellion and marches organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) calling for immediate ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Right-wing protests developed into rioting and disorder after three young girls were killed in an attack in the Merseyside town of Southport on 29 July.
In an interview with think tank Policy Exchange in May, Matt Twist said: “When we look back at the policing of protests over the last eight months, we know we didn’t get everything right – particularly in the early stages in October.
“On occasion, we did not move quickly to make arrests, for example the man chanting for ‘jihad’, which was a decision made following fast time advice from lawyers and the CPS.
“We are now much more focused on identifying reasonable grounds for arrest, acting where needed, and then investigating, so in these circumstances it’s very likely arrests would be made more quickly now.”
The assistant commissioner said that while the number of demonstrators had fallen significantly from a peak of around 300,000 people at pro-Palestinian events every fortnight last November to around 5,000 to 10,000 people every third weekend as of May, the protests still represented a “very real policing challenge”.
Between last October and June the Palestine-related protests in London cost the Metropolitan Police £42.9million, according to the new report by the right-wing think tank Policy Exchange.
Almost 52,000 Met officers’ shifts and almost 10,000 police officer shifts from forces elsewhere in the country were required for all protests in the same period.
On the topic of “two-tier” policing, Mr Twist said: “In public order policing we are neutral as to the cause that is being protested. We base policing tactics on the threat, harm and risk based on the information and intelligence available to us.
“In that sense there is no such thing as ‘two-tier or differential policing’ – there are in fact an infinite number of tiers of policing, depending on the threat, harm and risk.”
The report found current legislation requires protest organisers to only provide six days’ notice to the police of their intention to stage a march.
Final plans for the event are often therefore only provided to the public the day before or the day of a march itself, which is “simply unreasonable for the public to be required to continually adapt”, the report says.
It also found that in nearly a third of cases, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is choosing not to prosecute suspects in public order cases based on “public interest” grounds, almost double the number in robbery or homicide cases.
A nationwide poll of more than 1,500 adults was also conducted for the study to gauge public attitudes towards major protests.
It found that more than two thirds of respondents would drop plans to travel with small children (71 per cent) or an elderly or mobility-impaired friend of relative (69%) if a major protest was taking place in a nearby city or town centre.
In terms of leisure and retail, 62 per cent of those surveyed would drop plans to visit a tourist attraction while 58 per cent would drop plans to go shopping, with the latter rising to 69 per cent for women.
More than half (58 per cent) of those surveyed said they did not believe an organisation should be allowed to protest more than once a month.
As of 7 September, there had been 18 PSC-organised demonstrations in central London since last October.
Among its 26 recommendations, the report calls on the government to change the criteria to prohibit a protest march under section 13 of the Public Order Act 1986 to include “serious damage to property or serious disruption to the life of the community”, and to establish a protest commission for London appointed by the home secretary.
It also calls on the Met to impose “more stringent” conditions on protest marches, relating to the length of time, locations and distance over which they are held, and on all police forces to publish the full records of discussions between them and protest organisers well in advance of an event.
Former Met commissioner Lord Hogan-Howe QPM, who endorsed the report, said: “In recent years the policing of protest has become increasingly challenging for police commanders and officers on the ground.
“We regularly see police officers demonstrating conspicuous courage and for that they deserve our gratitude and respect.
“As this timely and detailed Policy Exchange report shows, the government must rebalance the legal regime in favour of ordinary members of the public going about their daily lives.”
The Palestine Solidarity Campaign was contacted for comment.
