UK's interior minister accuses police of pro-Palestinian bias over marches

Reuters ^ | November 9, 2023 | Kate Holton and Andrew Macaskill

[Leaning Right]

Britain's interior minister escalated a dispute with London's police force on Thursday over the handling of a planned, large pro-Palestinian march on Armistice Day, accusing officers of taking a softer stance towards left-wing causes.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman has taken a tough line on the tens of thousands of protesters who have gathered in London since the Hamas group's Oct. 7 attack on Israel, calling them "hate marches" and "mobs" that threaten the Jewish community.

[Leaning Right]

This story is a few days old. I’m posting it now because some members of the British government are now calling for Braverman’s resignation. Just like in the United States, telling the truth in the UK is harmful to your career.

[Blue Highway]

So calling these Pro-Palestinian protests hate mobs will get you fired? Funny how speaking the truth is now forbidden.

[pierrem15]

Yes. It's disgusting that even supposedly "conservative" papers like The Times of London are calling for her resignation for "interfering" with the police. She is merely criticizing them for failing to uphold equality under law, which is a core responsibility of her ministry.

The police, of course, arrested "far-right" counter demonstrators today, proving her point.

[RoosterRedux]

It’s in the London police chain of command...which runs right up to the Mayor (who is a Muslim, of course).

[SaxxonWoods]

“UK’s interior minister accuses police of pro-Palestinian bias over marches”

It will take the UK years to even figure out the Muslims rule them. It’s like a hypnosis of some kind.

[Stingray51]

What is the Home Secretary’s role in governing or setting policy for this police force? I am wondering if there is action she can take beyond writing an opinion piece. Might she not propose legislation, if necessary? Or issue some kind of order?

[jjotto]

Number one job of UK Home Secretary is setting policy for and supervising law enforcement in England and Wales. Also has immigration and some intelligence responsibilities.

[oldplayer]

Well, you know . . . she’s NOT wrong.

[BobL]

“This story is a few days old. I’m posting it now because some members of the British government are now calling for Braverman’s resignation. Just like in the United States, telling the truth in the UK is harmful to your career.”

One thing for sure - if Braverman (and of course Sunak) survive this, it means that there are REAL CONSERVATIVES running the UK, even if they happen to be Indian.

[dfwgator]

A Hindu vs Muslim Civil War is inevitable in Britain.

[Winniesboy]

There were arrests of both demonstrators and counter-demonstrators on the Rememberance Day protests.

[Winniesboy]

There is no ‘chain of command’ leading to the Mayor of London.
The Mayor has some responsibilities for the strategic direction of the police. He has, however, no operational powers, which are entirely vested in the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police. In practice, the Met Commissioner tends to take more notice of the Home Secretary than the Mayor, since central government has more control over the Met’s funding than the GLA.
Mark Rowley, the present Commissioner, has a strong record of standing up for police independence and against political interference, from his time in Northern Ireland. The important point is that the ‘chain of command’ stops with him, not with any politician. His powers are defined by statute.

[Winniesboy]

What is the Home Secretary’s role in governing or setting policy for this police force?

See post 12 above.

[Winniesboy]

Sadly, it’s all too apparent that Braverman’s recent hardline pronouncements, on this and other issues, are nothing to do with those issues themselves and everything to do with her own political ambition. She’s setting herself up as the champion of the right in the succession battle for the Conservative leadership, after Sunak’s resignation following (apparently inevitable) election defeat. It’s this blatant opportunism which is causing demands for her head.

[RoosterRedux]

Here's what I was basing my comment on (source: met.police.uk). As an aside, I have been told repeatedly by Londoners on this forum that the Mayor exercises a tremendous amount of power over the Met despite the apparent limitations described or implied by what follows:

The Met is an integral part of the structure of London and subject to rigorous scrutiny and checks by various bodies to ensure that it is operating in accordance to its mandate.

The Commissioner is accountable in law for exercising police powers and to the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) and is held to account for the delivery of policing by the Home Secretary and the Mayor of London. Both have a role in appointing the Commissioner, with the decision taken by the Home Secretary following consultation with the Mayor.

The Home Secretary also has a specific role regarding the functions of the Met that go beyond policing London – for example, counter-terrorism policing and the national policing functions that the Met carries out.

The Mayor of London was given a direct mandate for policing in London in 2011, as part of the Police and Social Responsibility Act. As such, the Mayor is responsible for setting the strategic direction of policing in London through the Police and Crime Plan.

A number of powers are devolved to MOPAC, which is led by the Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime. This includes the delivery of efficient and effective Met policing, management of resources and expenditure (MOPAC is the functional body of the Greater London Assembly that sets the policing budget, holds the Commissioner to account and in partnership discusses progress against the Police & Crime Plan, assesses the strategic budget position and key risks to delivery).

[Winniesboy]

That source is, of course, correct. It simply confirms what I have said - the Mayor’s functions in relation to the police are limited to general policy direction and strategy. He has no operational powers, and certainly has no power to intervene in the Commissioner’s conduct of an operation such as these marches. I disagree with the other private sources you quote if they are claiming otherwise.

[RoosterRedux]

The Mayor may have no direct legal power over Met operations, but he has significant indirect power/influence over the police and appears to use it (based on many articles over the years).

Your comment does not address that and presumes such power doesn't exist and is not used.

[RoosterRedux]

BTW, having power over general policy direction and strategy gives the Mayor a huge amount of power and influence that can be translated to operation pressure applied to the Commissioner.

I can't imagine the Commissioner telling his staff that what the Mayor wants is to be ignored because the mayor does not have operational responsibility.

[RoosterRedux]

Here's an example of Sadiq Khan's exercise of power over the Met:

Met Police: Mayor Sadiq Khan refuses to rule out breaking up force

By Noah Vickers

Sadiq Khan has refused to rule out breaking up the Metropolitan Police if current efforts to reform it fail.

The Mayor of London warned "nothing is off the table" when it comes to improving the force's culture.

On Friday, he announced the details of a new London Policing Board to further hold the Met to account.

The board's creation was a key recommendation made by Baroness Casey in her scathing review of cultures in the Met earlier this year.

Speaking to Times Radio, Mr Khan was asked whether there was the prospect of the Met Police being broken up if the culture did not improve.

He said: "I think... we need to try and see if this works. And if it doesn't work nothing is off the table."

When pressed on whether that would include breaking up the force into smaller independent organisations he said "we are not at that stage".

'Critical'

Referencing Sir Mark Rowley, the Met Police's commissioner, he said: "Sir Mark himself has had the humility and candour to say he needs around two or three years to turn things around. I think he's right, by the way. You don't change a system or culture overnight."

He said that he wanted a critical part of his mayoralty to be about the reform of the police service.

"It's incredibly important," he said. "The way we've always done stuff isn't working. And that's what the police board is seeking to address as well."

Earlier on Friday, Mr Khan told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that the new board consisted of experts from a wide range of areas.

"This outside expertise will be really important in ensuring we bring about the long-lasting cultural and systematic change in the police service that Londoners so desperately want and need," he said.

The board's members include author and educator Stuart Lawrence - the younger brother of murdered teenager Stephen Lawrence - and Neil Basu, the Met's former assistant commissioner for specialist operations.

[Winniesboy]

Of course he has that soft power, and of course he uses it, as is the case with any similar relationship. Similarly, it's the responsibility of those with operational powers, like the Commissioner, to stand up for their independence, which a succession of Commissioners have done in their relationship with successive mayors, with greater or lesser success. Given his track record, I've no doubt that Rowley does so robustly (witness his response to Braverman).

As for the 'many articles over the years', I'm not sure whether you mean by Khan or about Khan. More than most politicans (it happens to all of them) it seems to be his fate to be maliciously misquoted (notably the notorious 'part and parcel' comment).