Metropolitan Police Acting Commissioner Tim ‘interesting’ Godwin.
Britain’s most senior policeman has admitted he ‘ran out of police’ during the riots saying ‘the thin blue line is quite thin on occasions’.
Metropolitan Police Acting Commissioner Tim Godwin said he wished he had had more officers when the riots broke out on Saturday August 6, saying: ‘Sometimes you only realise how thin the blue line is when you are confronted by the full scale of disorder.’
Responding to criticism that it took Scotland Yard eight hours to bring the riots under control and that officers had let looters run amok, Mr Godwin told the Home Affairs Select Committee: ‘We ran out of police officers. The thin blue line is quite thin on occasions.’
It emerged yesterday just how close the Met were to using baton rounds for the first time on the British mainland during the disorder.
The so-called rubber bullets were released from storage, but the Gold Commander in charge of the operation decided not to use the bullets, which have been blamed on 17 fatalities in Northern Ireland during the troubles
‘I take pride in the fact that we filled up prison places as oppose to hospital beds, and I think that’s the British way.’
The beds were full Tim, with police officers-still, that’s the British way eh?
If ever there was a clearer Freudian slip (from the most senior officer in the country, mind) about how much we really matter, that was it.
It was worthy of General Sir Anthony Cecil Hogmanay Melchett… he had a less then caring attitude to his men (or survivors depending on your point of view…)…
He would rather fill hospital beds with people that risked their lives to maintain public order, than the people that actually perpetrated the crimes in the first place…
I have read some disgusting things in my time but that takes the biscuit…
If ‘That’s the British way’ Tim, we need to get rid of people like you and choose another way…
It seems that they struggled to locate enough public order trained officers too…
Assistant Commissioner Lynne Owens said increasing the number of trained officers from just over 2,500 to 10,000 would cost £8 million…
I wonder why Police officers are turning in their public order kit?
Mmmm… answers on a postcard please to the following address:
You must be fcuking joking, 999-Lifenotworthmycareer Street, UptheKybur, London FKU 1UP
Shijuro (nearer Go-juro though...) is not georgedixon's relatively honest Blog 
I’m one who handed in my kit! Fed up with wishy washy commanders with no guts letting scum of all kinds run circles around us whilst having rest days cancelled plus 15( no extra pay just another day to add the kist of rejected leave apps due to being on minimum-strength) for the privilege of being there!
Ps. Wasn’t in level two kit when a colleague and I fought of a gang of 20 +youths that deliberately ambushed us at a routine call last month ! Just guts and common sense beat them one trashed irv couple of coppers with head wounds! They rang as the sirens were heard management response was to flood the area after the event with loads of PSU’s rumour had it that more of them needed treatment than we did ! Just waiting for DPS to come calling for my deliberate strikes to the head!
Oh god, why do I still want to go full time?
Because, you want to serve the community, in a community sort of way. Communities are important. Communities are the backbone of our society, we are all part of at least one community…
That and the money.
On my board many years ago I was asked if I was joining for the money… ”No sir, I am taking a pay cut”… ”Why then?”
”Well… I am told by my uncle that it’s a really good pension. Also, there is the real possibility I can retire in my early fifties-and the work looks interesting…”
”Thank you for your honesty…”, was the reply from one of the panellists…
‘why do you want to join dibble?’
‘Ive nothing else going for me sir’
communitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunity. Can I come in now?
Great post btw!
Problem “We ran out of Police”
Interpretation – “”When applying the standard inputs and numerical coefficients to the Dymanic Risk Assessment, there was an indication that the overall “Task staffing requirement” might reach the upper bound set by factoring in the immediately number of immediately available suitably trained and qualified Officers.”
Solution – A high-level meeting was called, and a number of strategies were considered. The favoured option was; reducing the threat level by ordering all residents & shopkeepers in the area to open their doors and post ‘Help yourself’ signs in the window.
Disadvantages – Some of the locals might resist this community-based effort at crime reduction.
This could addressed by
a) Robustly arresting complainants for ‘obstruction’- simultaneously upping the detection rate and reducing the number front-line Officers exposed to hazardous working conditions (They would be in the Station 10 miles away, doing paperwork for 4 hours )
b) Handing anyone seen with an armful of trainers/ booze/ TVs/ &c a pad of ‘I just fahnd it, innit’ stickers to conceal price tickets.
Don’t…
We are not THAT far from it… now!
Our response to 7/7 was shite because of SMT-officially it was the rank and file’s fault (of course it was…). SMT were too busy pulling their usless arses off the 9th hole while the lads and lasses got kittet up. It took 2 hours just to get to the train station down the road due to SMT’s poor ‘management’.
There may not be enough of you but there’s millions of us MOPS. Next time around the “community” might not restrain themselves waiting around a couple of days for the police to be allowed to take control.
You would think that… since we have shown to be only ever a few days away from all out civil war…the powers-that-can’t-be-arsed would be at least a little bit worried about that. Strangely…and quite possibly deliberately…they don’t seem to be, at all.
Good post shij, but I have to disagree with your linky ref Harwood (even with it being an article from the guardian). Whilst I think it’s wrong to charge him after being told by the DPP that he would face no charges, it’s been my opinion that the force he used was not proportionate to the threat that the, obstructive, Tomlinson posed. Whilst I don’t think for a second that Harwood imagined that Tomlinson would die, I have it from a number of reputable sources that Harwood was a bit of a loose cannon, to say the least, and was given van minding duties to keep him out of the way of the public. I don’t think it right that he face trial after the media trial he’s already received but I found some of his evidence at the inquest cringeworthy. Disciplined? Yes. Standing trial? No.
As I say, I have done similar stuff in the past… and it is only by luck I am not in prison.
I think the main problem we have is that people just don’t accept that they are subject to the rule of law-and break it.
It is also the case that people seem not to understand that violence is a part of our job. If Mr Tomlinson had obeyed the request to get lost he would still (possibly) be alive today…
I would accept that killing someone for not moving on is extreme…but Harwood didn’t do that…he pushed him over.
Yes, it was rough. But…
He should have done what he was told.
I don’t disagree with you there mate. He should have complied but I can’t help but think that a moment of common sense on Harwoods part would have been in order.
Don’t you see? We get investigated no matter what happens?
If I signal someone to stop with blues/twos and they speed off and immediately crash and someone dies-I will be blamed and face manslaughter charges or death by dangerous…
All actions can have unintended consequences…
I do understand that mate but, I’m not sure if I’m articulating myself very well here, but Simon Harwood was told to stay in the van that day but, because of his desire to get stuck in, he disobeyed that order and got himself in bother. His past is somewhat “colorful” to say the least and, like I said, was well known as a “nutter” even by TSG standards. Having spent the last 5 years of my UK police carreer on a Support Group, 4 of them a PSU trainer also, I am fully aware of the mindset of people on there, and I’m no angel myself, but to be regarded as a loose cannon by blokes on TSG takes some doing.
Whilst I think it’s wrong that he faces manslaughter charges for his part in the death of, the obstructive, Tonlinson. It’s people like him that give all of us a bad name. You’ll have to look far and wide to find someone as loyal to my mates, profession, and other officers than me, but even I can see that he was a wrong ‘un and needed to be brought to heel at the very least.