Denis O'Connor, author the review of the policing of the G20 demos by Her Majesty's Inspector of Constabulary:
What the review identifies is that the world is changing and the police need to think about changing their approach to policing protests. We live in an age where public consent of policing cannot be assumed and policing, including public order policing, should be designed to win the consent of the public.
The Guardian's Paul Lewis has the full story. The report itself is available here. Will its recommendations be taken up with vigour by the MPA and the Mayor?
Update, 14:01 A statement from Green MPA member Jenny Jones AM:
The Metropolitan Police have received a clear message from their own inspectorate that they have to facilitate peaceful protest, even if that means allowing some illegal behaviour. If the Met wants to keep the public's consent then it must improve public order training and tactics, especially regarding the use of kettling, where official guidelines need to be revised and communication with protesters improved. The police's primary objective at all times should be to maintain community safety and the management of the G20 protests clearly failed in this respect.
The inspectorate has got it exactly right about the need to shift the focus onto whether the protest is peaceful, rather than whether it is lawful. The climate camp protest on Bishopsgate was part of a well established tradition of non violent direct action and the aggressive use of shields and batons was clearly over the top. The policing of the Tamil protest outside Parliament shows that the police can get the balance right.
I also agree with the Inspectorate that existing training in public order policing and tactics are inadequate and don't reflect the full spectrum of protest which the police have to deal with. We should adopt the same approach as the Northern Ireland police and have a civil liberties expert inserted into the training regime to give advice.
The police's primary objective at all times should be to maintain community safety and the management of the G20 protests clearly failed in this respect. I will press the London Mayor to make adopting these HMIC recommendations one of his priorities for policing in London, but he should also consider whether kettling is ever appropriate. Any delay will lead to an erosion of public support for policing in London.
Update, 22:28 Lib Dem MPA member Dee doocey:
This report clearly highlights a number of failings over the policing of the G20 demonstrations, not just in the actions of some individuals but most importantly in the whole strategy adopted by the police towards largely peaceful demonstrators.
I do not share this report's faith in the use of containment ('kettling') to deal with demonstrations. Despite the safeguards recommended in the report, I doubt that this tactic can be used without causing more problems than it solves.
I also feel that the more sophisticated approach to policing advocated in this report will require more sophisticated training and management if it is to be implemented effectively.
This report is absolutely right when it clearly states that the correct starting point for the police is the presumption in favour of facilitating peaceful assembly. The Metropolitan Police, from top to bottom, now need to adopt policies to ensure this happens, and this will require a major cultural change within the police.
My main concern is that the report's many recommendations are fully implemented. In the past valid criticism over policing of protests have been quietly ignored by the Met. Never again should this happen.
A little cooler than Jenny Jones's response. Does Labour have anything to say?
