Police forces face more than 1,000 complaints about treatment of women in six months
The ability of police to tackle violence against women and girls has again been cast into doubt by new figures that show only 1% of more than 1,500 police officers or staff facing complaints about their treatment of women in a six-month period were sacked.
Data from the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) shows there were 524 complaints made by members of the public against 867 officers and staff in England and Wales police forces between October 2021 and March 2022.
Out of the 290 cases resolved, 91% ended with no further action, and no officers or staff were sacked.
During the same six months a further 672 police officers or staff faced conduct allegations relating to violence against women and girls.
So far, only 13 officers and staff have been sacked as a result of those investigations.
The figures have been published following the high profile cases of police officers David Carrick and Wayne Couzens.
Carrick was jailed for life last month for dozens of offences including a series of rapes and sexual assaults.
Couzens murdered Sarah Everard in 2021. It has since emerged that police had failed to act on reports of indecent exposure that could have led to his arrest days before he kidnapped and killed Sarah.
Victims of domestic violence have told Sky News that women have lost confidence in police.
Rachel Williams, who faced 18 years of abuse from her husband and now advocates on behalf of women experiencing domestic violence told Sky News: “People don’t feel safe reporting to police because of everything that’s happened over the last couple of years.
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“I’ve had these cases coming to me. People asking what is the point in disclosing what has happened to them. They ask themselves. Am I disclosing to a decent police officer or am I disclosing to a perpetrator?”
“I think the top priority is for government to actually listen to those that have experienced it and been through it,” she adds.
The data from the NPCC shows that complaints against police officers related to various allegations including sexual harassment, discreditable conduct not in the execution of their duty, and sexual assault.
Sky News was given access to a new domestic abuse resolution team set up by Leicestershire police last September to try to encourage more victims to come forward.
Leicestershire police abuse resolution team members
Working alongside a sexual assault referral centre in the city, officers hope to increase rates of conviction of perpetrators.
Detective Superintendent Chris Baker is the Leicestershire police lead for tackling violence against women and girls.
He says there are officers in his force currently under investigation but says “we are dealing with them in a robust way through police regulations and the criminal courts”.
DI Chris Baker
He has been inviting female police officers and staff to share their experiences of the workplace.
“Whether they’ve experienced any kind of harassment, misogyny or sexism, that will be rooted out because there’s absolutely no place in policing for those sorts of attitudes towards women and girls,” he says.
“A really important part of what we do is to bring people to justice because by doing that we safeguard victims.”
Police Sergeant Michelle Goddard has been tasked with tackling the language used by officers when responding to domestic violence calls.
Sergeant Michelle Goddard
“It’s about acknowledging that using victim blaming or minimising language is absolutely not acceptable but also that it creates a barrier that prevents people from feeling that we are the right people to deal with their complaint,” she told Sky News.
“It prevents them from feeling safe with us and it can create a barrier that prevents them from being able to report at all.”
Deputy Chief Constable Maggie Blyth, NPCC co-ordinator for violence against women and girls told Sky News: “We recognise that the trust of women and girls across the country is really, really broken.
“To try and rebuild that trust the data that we’re putting out today is indicative of our accountability to women and girls.
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‘It was petrifying’ – officer’s ex-wife
“We want to show that we are indeed shining that light, that we will continue to do so and that we will do all we can to remove people who shouldn’t be working within policing.
“We will do all that we can with other parts of the system to improve the criminal justice response for women and girls who come forward. It’s harrowing to report a domestic abuse or a rape crime. It’s harrowing. We need to make sure that the outcomes for women and girls improve.”
Donald Trump may be denied the honour of addressing parliament on his state visit to the UK later this year, with no formal request yet submitted for him to be given that privilege.
It comes after President Macron’s successful state visit this week, in which he was invited to speak in front of both Houses of Parliament.
Sky News has been told the Speaker of the House of Commons, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, hasn’t so far received a request to invite the US president to speak in parliament when he is expected to visit in September.
It was confirmed to MPs who have raised concerns about the US president being allowed to address both houses.
Kate Osborne, Labour MP for Jarrow and Gateshead East, wrote to the speaker in April asking him to stop Mr Trump from addressing parliament, and tabled an early-day motion outlining her concerns.
“I was happy to see Macron here but feel very differently about Trump,” she said.
“Trump has made some very uncomfortable and worrying comments around the UK government, democracy, the Middle East, particularly around equalities and, of course, Ukraine.
“So, I think there are many reasons why, when we’re looking at a state visit, we should be looking at why they’re being afforded that privilege. Because, of course, it is a privilege for somebody to come and address both of the houses.”
But the timing of the visit may mean that any diplomatic sensitivities, or perceptions of a snub, could be avoided.
France’s President Emmanuel Macron addressed parliament during his state visit this month
Lord Ricketts, a former UK ambassador to France, pointed out that parliament isn’t sitting for much of September, and that could help resolve the issue.
In 2017, he wrote a public letter questioning the decision to give Donald Trump his first state visit, saying it put Queen Elizabeth II in a “very difficult position”.
Parliament rises from 16 September until 13 October due to party conferences.
The dates for the state visit haven’t yet been confirmed by Buckingham Palace or the government.
However, they have not denied that it will take place in September, after Mr Trump appeared to confirm they were planning to hold the state visit that month. The palace confirmed this week that the formal planning for his arrival had begun.
Mr Trump has said he believes the trip to the UK will take place in September. Pic: Reuters
When asked about parliamentary recess potentially solving the issue, Ms Osborne said: “It may be a way of dealing with it in a very diplomatic way… I don’t know how much control we have over Trump’s diary.
“But if we can manoeuvre it in a way that means that the House isn’t sitting, then that seems like a good solution, maybe not perfect, because I’d actually like him to know that he’s not welcome.”
A message from the speaker’s office, seen by Sky News, says: “Formal addresses to both Houses of Parliament are not automatically included in the itinerary of such a state visit.
“Whether a foreign head of state addresses parliament, during a state visit or otherwise, is part of the planning decisions.”
Mr Trump made his first state visit to the UK in June 2019 during his first presidency. File pic: Reuters
It’s understood that if the government agrees to a joint address to parliament, the Lord Chamberlain’s office writes to the two speakers, on behalf of the King, to ask them to host this.
It will be Mr Trump’s second state visit.
During his first, in 2019, he didn’t address parliament, despite the fact that his predecessor, Barack Obama, was asked to do so.
It was unclear if this was due to the fact John Bercow, the speaker at the time, made it clear he wasn’t welcome to do so.
However, it didn’t appear to dampen Mr Trump’s excitement about his time with the Royal Family.
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Speaking earlier this year, he described his state visit as “a fest” adding “it’s an honour… I’m a friend of Charles, I have great respect for King Charles and the family, William; we have really just a great respect for the family. And I think they’re setting a date for September.”
It is expected that, like Mr Macron, the pageantry for his trip this time will revolve around Windsor, with refurbishment taking place at Buckingham Palace.
Fuel to the engines of the Air India plane that crashed last month appears to have cut off shortly after take-off, a preliminary report has found.
According to the report switches in the cockpit that controlled fuel moved to a “CUTOFF” position.
It said: “Engine 1 and Engine 2 fuel cutoff switches transitioned from RUN to CUTOFF position one after another with a time gap of one second.
“The Engine N1 and N2 began to decrease from their take-off values as the fuel supply to the engines was cut off.”
The crash site. Pic: AAIB
There was then confusion in the cockpit. In the voice recording, one of the pilots is heard asking the other why he “cut off”. The other pilot responds that he did not do so.
There were no conclusions as to how the switches were moved.
One of the engines was able to be restarted, but could not reverse the plane’s deceleration, the report found.
“At this stage of investigation, there are no recommended actions to Boeing 787-8 and/or GE GEnx-1B engine operators and manufacturers,” India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) said in the report.
A diagram in the report shows how the plane crashed into a building. Pic: AAIB
No significant bird activity was observed in the vicinity of the plane’s flight path, the report said. The aircraft started to lose altitude before crossing the airport perimeter wall, it added.
The plane plummeted into a busy area, killing 241 passengers and 19 others on the ground while incinerating everything around it.
The AAIB’s report is based on the initial findings of the probe, marking 30 days since the crash.
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Liverpool have retired the number 20 shirt in honour of Diogo Jota – the first time it has made such a gesture.
The club said it was a “unique tribute to a uniquely wonderful person” and the decision was made in consultation with his wife and family.
The number 20 will be retired at all levels, including the men’s and women’s first teams and academy squads.
A statement said: “It was the number he wore with pride and distinction, leading us to countless victories in the process – and Diogo Jota will forever be Liverpool Football Club’s number 20.”
The club called it a “recognition of not only the immeasurable contribution our lad from Portugal made to the Reds’ on-pitch successes over the last five years, but also the profound personal impact he had on his teammates, colleagues and supporters and the everlasting connections he built with them”.
Jota’s wife joined Liverpool players to view tributes at Anfield on Friday. Pic: Liverpool FC
Pic: Liverpool FC
Newly-married Jota died alongside his brother when his Lamborghini crashed in northern Spain on 3 July.
Police said this week that all the evidence so far suggests Jota was the one driving the vehicle.
Liverpool teammates joined members of Jota’s family, including his wife Rute, at a huge memorial site outside Anfield on Friday.
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A fan looks at messages on a memorial wall near Anfield. Pic: Reuters
Virgil van Dijk and Andy Robertson were among players at the funeral. Pic: Reuters
The star’s funeral took place last weekend, with Liverpool colleagues and members of the Portuguese national team in attendance.
Reds captain Virgil van Dijk carried a shirt bearing the number 20 made from flowers.
Liverpool players returned to the club’s training ground for the start of pre-season on Tuesday.
Their first game since Jota’s death will be on Sunday when they play a friendly away against Preston North End.
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