The Manifesto Project: Fixing British policing

I’m now up to seventeen thousands words on the manifesto project. Though I’ve covered a number of topics in detail, I still feel like I’m only scratching the surface. A lot of people tell me to keep it simple, but the fact is, governing a first world country is not simple. Many people favour simplistic solutions which is why populism will always find an audience, but the point of this exercise is to set out a comprehensive picture of what’s wrong, and at least offer some signposts as to how it can be fixed.

Policing, by contrast with welfare, care and pensions, is a relatively easy one since we can all see how and where it’s going wrong. There is a daily stream of video footage that shows our police are losing the streets. It’s as much as problem of culture as it is manpower. In this post, I set out my provisional ideas as to how to put it right. I’ve not yet properly ordered my thoughts but here goes…

Fit for purpose policing

Policing in the UK is undeniably broken. Through amalgamations, streamlining and politicisation, the force is no longer fit for purpose. Police officers are too thinly stretched, having to perform as detective, peacekeeper, social worker, paramedic, and taxi driver. The force suffers from a retention and recruitment crisis, with deteriorating conditions and poor pay. Meanwhile, some forces suffer from political activism at the command level, resulting in “woke” policing.

Over the last twenty years local police stations and detention facilities have closed which has further eroded genuine community policing, where dedicated officers patrol a regular beat. It must also be noted that we have an alarming number of low intelligence police officers, some with poor language and literacy skills. Police are also overworked with paperwork and administration.

A recent trend in policing is the prioritisation of public order at all costs, even to the extent of appeasing the mob. The police are quick to act against everyday British people, but will kneel for Black Lives Matters and stand idle as pro-Palestine protesters chant genocidal slogans. There is a growing perception of two-tier policing, which is not just a perception. The police must be instructed to intervene. Groups such as Just Stop Oil and Extinction Rebellion must be met with extreme prejudice.

We take the view police authorities are now too big and must be broken up. We will restore real community policing by rebuilding local police stations and detention facilities. We will ensure police work a regular beat, and that they’re drilled in the value of real community connections.

As regards the London Met, we will dismantle it and establish four separate commands answerable directly to the boroughs. We will then establish a London wide armed force, similar to the French Gendarmerie which will perform armed response duties, counter-terror operations and riot control. This force will be directly answerable to the Prime Minister. Where officers carry arms, either in the ‘London Gendarmerie’ or elsewhere, there will be a presumption enshrined in law that where a split second decision is involved (resulting in a death) any question of legitimacy will be automatically determined in favour of the officer.

As regards “woke” policing, this is usually the consequence of weak leadership marinated in political correctness. It feeds the perception that the police spend more time investigating tweets than burglaries and undermines public confidence in the police. Though Police and Crime Commissioners are supposed to be able to direct policing, they have have proven useless. They will be scrapped in favour of community review boards comprised of magistrates and members of the public on a jury service basis. The power to hire and fire chief constables should be given to ministers.

Outrageously, the police now routinely hold informal records of incidents known as ‘non-crime hate incidents’ (NCHI). People who are recorded in this system are not informed and have no method of putting forward a defence. Responding to a Daily Telegraph freedom of information request the police in England and Wales logged 119,934 non crime hate incidents between 2014 and 2019. These records can affect a person’s job prospects, even though they have not been convicted of, or charged with, a criminal offence.

The Party will end the culture of politically correct policing and review and alter police training resources to remove racial and political elements. The UK is policed by the consent of the people, and we will ensure that remains so. The Party will bar police officers from taking sides in political demonstrations or protests.

As regards to suitability of police, all officers will submit to a bi-annual fitness test which they must pass. Officers incapable of passing a robust literacy and language skills test will be dismissed. Police officers and police vehicles will display no political symbols or badges, including rainbow flags.

The Party will make sure that Police Forces prioritise and investigate real crimes against people and property. People should not be pursued and harassed by the police for telling jokes or for expressing what are perceived to be politically incorrect opinions. All non-crime hate incidents should be abolished, and such records must be scrapped and discontinued.

Headcount and salaries will improve but senior pay will be capped, except for high achievers, which will be decided on an individual basis.

In order to make cities liveable spaces, police will be instructed to tackle vagrancy and will work closely with the border force to remove illegal immigrants. The first order of business will be to build three new super-prisons. The priority will be placed on public safety and punishment. Zero tolerance for violent crime will mean zero tolerance.

The Party supports police officers having powers to stop and search all suspects if they have reasonable grounds to think they are carrying drugs, a weapon, stolen property, items used in connection with theft or to use to commit criminal damage.

The Party will reverse the decision taken in 2013 by David Cameron’s Coalition Government which introduced direct entry to the senior ranks of policing, thus ending 180 years of tradition, which holds that all recruits to the police start their careers as constables. The Party will review and audit the actions and policies of all chief constables and issue new requirements, reflected in this manifesto, that must be adhered to.

Police misconduct, real and perceived, must be dealt with quickly. We can’t have officers suspended for years only to be acquitted. Likewise real offenders should be disciplined quickly and not be allowed to resign. Crimes against the police should be escalated - assault becomes GBH.

Part of the problem in policing is that the police do not have the backing of the politicians to keep our streets safe. The politicians grovel at the feet of professional race agitators, many of which enjoy state funding. We will terminate their funding.

PSCOs and support officers are ineffectual and are often used as a substitute for real police. We will scrap them.  

Law & Justice

In recent years we’ve seen criminals so emboldened by police indifference to petty crime, they feel entitled to raid shops and small business, and they do so with impunity. This is what happens when you let the small things slide and make excuses for it. Nobody would wish to see a young mother prosecuted for shoplifting tampons or baby food, but with a generous welfare state and food banks, there’s really no excuse for it, and in most cases, shoplifting is just people taking what is not theirs, for their own purposes, simply because they do not wish to pay for it.

The foundation of a functioning society is trust. Without it, nothing can function. We have seen in the USA, where shoplifting has effectively been decriminalised in Democrat controlled cities, that retail is no longer able to function, leaving entire communities in “food deserts” as even super markets have closed down. We are not yet close to this level of deterioration but it serves as a stark warning as to what can happen.

Presently we live in a society where delivery drivers can leave Amazon orders on the doorstep. That is a by-product of civic trust. If we lose it, we are a less civilised country. This happens because British people are decent, but also because criminal deterrence works. As such, the police will no longer overlook petty theft. It is wholly selfish, undermines civilisation, and must be punished. If we lack the prison space, we will build more prisons. Prison works to incapacitate criminals.   

On broader issues of criminality, the criminal justice system in the United Kingdom has deteriorated. It prioritises political positioning and is effectively a tool for the imposition of political ideals.

The judiciary has also shown itself to be politically biased and has interpreted human rights laws to protect criminals while disregarding the threat they may pose to the population. Foreign rapists and terrorists remain in the United Kingdom, even after conviction and deportation orders, and their legal defence is funded by the very taxpayer whose safety they threaten. Criminal trials can take years to reach court, causing immense disruption and trauma to victims and witnesses and keeping their lives on hold.

When criminals are convicted, sentences are often short, cut in half, or do not reflect the seriousness of the offence - this is particularly the case in terms of sexual offences. Convicts found guilty of rape or child sex abuse cases are often jailed for a short time, if at all. Furthermore, violent sex offenders have been jailed alongside female prisoners, leading to assaults on vulnerable female convicts. A Ministry of Justice report in 2020 declared at least seven sex attacks in prison by transgender inmates on biological females.

The British public, while aware of many of the problems in the justice system, are alienated from it. For example, following the Rotherham scandal of 2015, and subsequent similar revelations, no police officers were held accountable, leaving the public in a powerless and vulnerable position. As it stands, police are not accountable to the public, and thus, there is little incentive for them to act to the highest standards.

In essence, justice is not being done, is not seen to be done, and the public has no direct power to influence change. The Crown Prosecution Service has consistently shown itself to be unfit for purpose. The Party will abolish the CPS and return prosecutorial powers to police forces and their prosecution lawyers.

Key points:

• The Party will enforce the law of the land without exceptions or the accommodation of illegal foreign cultural practices.

• The Party will ensure that the appointment of judges is based on the merit of legal experts and proven impartiality, with no extra, woke, politically correct requirements.

• The Party will scrap the Human Rights Act 1988 (HRA) which incorporates the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) into UK law and extends entitlements to foreign nationals. The ECHR makes it practically impossible to deport foreign criminals.  The Party will make the UK Supreme Court the final arbiter of English/Scottish law and it will be guided solely by Statute enacted by our elected representatives.

• The Party will uphold the principles of ‘innocent until proven guilty’ and that judgment in criminal cases must be based on objective evidence and not subjective feelings.

• The Party will repeal all hate speech laws which undermine these fundamental principles and are designed to criminalise comments based on whether a complainant feels offended.

• The Party will introduce legislation that clarifies and enhances the rights and abilities of UK citizens to defend their person, family, and property from physical attack.

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This is not by any means exhaustive, but I’m hoping it’s enough to start a wider debate.

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