Anger Police Shun Poppy Day Parades

[agchristie]

Is this inevitable with the serious police cutbacks around the country or should events like this be maintained at previous policing levels?

http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/612670/Anger-hard-up-Police-shun-Poppy-day-parades-support

[jno]

police the parades instead of what? People want the government to cut budgets everywhere, but they want the same services everywhere.

[baza]

Cutbacks in numbers of officers and yet we have overpaid crime commissioners on fat paycheques.

[retrocop]

It is absolutely disgraceful that a festival of remembrance should have to be policed EVER in this country. To ensure the continuance of scum being excluded from this solemn and essential thanksgiving the police should pull out all stops to ensure every remembrance ceremony continues in all parts of the UK, be it a hamlet,town or city.Serving police officers who have served in the armed forces and have seen their colleagues lay down their lives should also be allowed to march with veterans.
If police do not ensure that this ceremony does not pass peacefully then it will descend into a bloodbath because the EDL will certainly defend the right to honour our dead. That is not a nice alternative.

[Baldric]

I don't know what the score is locally at the moment as I've only just seen this however I suspect we will do whatever is necessary for our Parade to go ahead with or without the Police.

[retrocop]

Balders,
Just cancelled my BL affiliation (Politics and subscription reasons) but will attend our local ceremony as I have done in the past when I was a member. God forbid anyone trys to disrupt it if there is a police presence or not. Lets hope it will go well but my pension can go to hell if it doesn't.

[Baldric]

I would guess that the main problems are going to be Traffic Management in most areas, that can be sorted, although I don't doubt there will be disruptions caused in some areas as with previous years.

[agchristie]

retrocop // God forbid anyone trys to disrupt it if there is a police presence or not.//

With so many parades and an increased threat to security I hope you are right. Complacency is a dangerous thing.

Good first post by the way.

[retrocop]

Thanks ag.

[Gromit]

The Police's job is to deter crime and investigate crime. They should never be paid to attend parades and ceremonies for the sake of it.
If the parades have a history of good behaviour and little or no arrests, then deploying police to them is a waste of resources and manpower.

Since 2010, the police force has lost 17,000 officers and 4,500 PCSOs. A further 22,000 job cuts are due over the next 5 years. Budgets have been cut by £1.5billion.

The British Legion should be more worried about the ability of the Police to catch criminals and investigate crimes because the Police have been cut too far, than their inability to provide an observer for their wreath laying.

[EDDIE51]

To answer the question, yes it is inevitable.
Police cuts of up to 40% in numbers mean that.
I suggest the British Legion appoint volunteer stewards to oversee the parades, they have members with suitable experience.

[mikey4444]

The Police have had their numbers cuts since 2010, as Gromit has explained.
As people voted for a Tory Government in May, after already experienced a previous 5 years of a Tory-led coalition, perhaps they are getting what they voted for ?

[naomi24]

This is the usual sensationalist journalism from a tacky newspaper. The police aren’t ‘shunning’ the parades. Read the article.

//Yesterday a Scotland Yard spokeswoman said officers would be present at events in Havering to ensure public safety.

Essex Police said: “Officers will, as usual, assist at any emergency or traffic incident that occurs during the event.”

Nottinghamshire Police said it was working to assist where necessary.//

[anotheoldgit]

I presume they will still be dancing and posing at Notting Hill Carnival?

http://www.nationalturk.com/en/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/Notting-Hill-Carnival-Policemen.jpg

[naomi24]

Yes - just as they will still be present at Poppy Day parades.

[agchristie]

@ Naomi

Yes, the headline, not unusually from the Express, is misleading with the use of the word 'shun'.

Policing numbers will fluctuate up and down the country and I note from the article for example that Walsall's number has more or less halved.

[dannyk13]

Back in the day I can remember when the police actually took part in Armistice parades

[agchristie]

AOG // I presume they will still be dancing and posing at Notting Hill Carnival?//

But are the Express making a 'song and dance' of this issue?

[naomi24]

ag, we know that police numbers are being reduced, but I do so hate 'spin' - and newspapers like the Express are renowned for it.

[Gromit]

So yet again it turns out that the report is just a pack of lies. Why do these papers mislead and distress their readers on a daily basis, and more to the point, why do people continue to buy the rubbish?

[agchristie]

@ Gromit

The use of the word 'shun' suggests a deliberate aversion which is not the case, more a reduction in many areas.

In my area, the police are stretched to the limit and morale is not high. Despite this, I know a number of officers who take great pride in their challenging line of work.