The Home Secretary’s accusation that the police have double standards over their policy on marching in an article in this morning’s Times has left Suella Braverman’s career on a knife edge
Downing Street has admitted that the article had not been cleared with them and had asked for changes that were not carried out prior to publication.
Rishi Sunak is facing calls to sack Suella Braverman but Downing Street said at lunchtime that the Prime Minister had full confidence in the Home Secretary.
However they also admitted that her comments in a piece published by The Times had not been signed off and it was now seeking to “establish the detail” about how the article was released.
Labour and Lib Dem figures have demanded Ms Braverman be sacked. Sir Keir Starmer claimed the Home Secretary was “out of control”
In the article she claimed that unnamed police chiefs appeared to care more about avoiding “flak” from tackling such “mobs” than ensuring public safety
“Unfortunately, there is a perception that senior police officers play favourites when it comes to protesters,” she wrote.
“During Covid, why was it that lockdown objectors were given no quarter by public order police yet Black Lives Matters demonstrators were enabled, allowed to break rules and even greeted with officers taking the knee?
“Rightwing and nationalist protesters who engage in aggression are rightly met with a stern response yet pro-Palestinian mobs displaying almost identical behaviour are largely ignored, even when clearly breaking the law? I have spoken to serving and former police officers who have noted this double standard.
Former Greater Manchester Chief Constable Sir Peter Fahy said that the comments “will leave police officers feel even more unsupportive and gravel concerned that the Home Office does not understand the legislation” adding that
“The Home Secretary also does not seem to appreciate the complete confusion there was on how lockdown legislation applied to protest which made the police’s position dealing with Black Live Matters protests incredibly difficult”
