Suella Braverman gives police ‘full support’ to ramp up use of stop and search
Suella Braverman has encouraged police chiefs to use stop and search powers more often to “seize dangerous weapons and prevent more knife crime attacks”.
The home secretary’s letter to 43 chief constables does not have any direct impact on how officers act, as the police are operationally independent of government.
But the latest intervention shows the Home Office wants to see an increase in officers using the controversial powers.
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There has been criticism of the practice of stop and search, especially over the proportion of black men and boys – with one research paper describing it as a “rite of passage” for black boys.
Government statistics suggest black people are seven times more like to be stopped and searched compared with white people.
And campaign groups have previously warned that relaxing restrictions on police use of the power could compound discrimination.
‘First priority must be on prevention and public safety’
But Ms Braverman is “giving her full backing” to the policing method – with the Home Office highlighting in the 12 months to March 2022, 99 young people died due to knife crime, and 31 of those victims were black.
A Home Office spokesman says this shows “black males are, therefore, disproportionately more likely to be killed by violence and knife crime”.
“Though the government recognises black males are more likely to be stopped and searched, our first priority must be on prevention and public safety.”
Almost 50,000 weapons have been seized during stop and searches since 2019 according to the Home Office, leading to more than 220,000 arrests.
Ms Braverman also wants officers to “arrest and investigate” in instances where someone “unlawfully” obstructs officers stopping and searching a person.
The home secretary is also calling for the body worn camera footage recorded by constables to be released faster as she hopes “by telling the whole story quickly, innocent police officers will not be subject to trial by social media over their actions”.
Ms Braverman said: “Carrying weapons is a scourge on our society. And anyone doing so is risking their own lives as well as the lives of those around them. This dangerous culture must be brought to a stop.
“My first priority is to keep the public safe and people who insist on carrying a weapon must know that there will be consequences.”
There have been concerns about the proportion of black men and boys who have been stopped and searched
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She added: “The police have my full support to ramp up the use of stop and search, wherever necessary, to prevent violence and save more lives.
“Every death from knife crime is a tragedy. That’s why I also back the police in tackling this blight in communities which are disproportionately affected, such as among young black males. We need to do everything in our power to crack down on this violence.”
The home secretary also updated the safeguards being put in place when it comes to stop and search to “strengthen trust between the police and local communities”.
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The government therefore says it intends to make it a legal requirement for police to “communicate” when they are putting Section 60 orders in place, which make it easier to stop and search in specific areas, with exceptions if it would “hinder a sensitive situation to do so”.
And data on every interaction must be collected, passed to the Home Office, and published.
Braverman ‘chasing headlines’, says Labour
Labour’s shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper accused the home secretary of “chasing headlines” instead of tackling knife crime.
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April: Stop and search powers trialled
“Knife crime has shot up after 13 years of the Tories, with the biggest increases in the suburbs and counties, destroying lives and devastating families,” she said.
“Yet instead of a serious government plan to get knife crime back down, the home secretary is just writing the police more letters and chasing headlines.
“The decimation of neighbourhood policing, cuts to youth prevention work, lack of a proper serious violence strategy and lack of action on organised crime under the Tories has allowed knife crime to go up across all communities.”
US president-elect Donald Trump has suggested Israel and Hamas could agree a Gaza ceasefire by the end of the week.
Talks between Israeli and Hamas representatives resumed in the Qatari capital Doha yesterday, after US President Joe Biden indicated a deal to stop the fighting was “on the brink” on Monday.
A draft agreement has been sent to both sides. It includes provisions for the release of hostages and a phased Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza.
Qatar says Israel and Hamas are at their “closest point” yet to a ceasefire deal.
Two Hamas officials said the group has accepted the draft agreement, with Israel still considering the deal.
An Israeli official said a deal is close but “we are not there” yet.
More than 46,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched its ground offensive in the aftermath of the 7 October attacks, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.
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What’s in the proposed deal?
Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike on beachfront cafe in Deir al Balah. Pic: Reuters
Biden hails possibility of agreement
President Biden said it would include a hostage release deal and a “surge” of aid to Palestinians, in his final foreign policy speech as president.
“So many innocent people have been killed, so many communities have been destroyed. Palestinian people deserve peace,” he said.
“The deal would free the hostages, halt the fighting, provide security to Israel, and allow us to significantly surge humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians who suffered terribly in this war that Hamas started.”
Qatari mediators have sent Israel and Hamas a draft proposal for an agreement to halt the fighting.
Analysis:
Deal might be close, but there are many unanswered questions
Pic: Reuters
Trump: ‘We’re very close’
President-elect Donald Trump has also discussed a possible peace deal during a phone interview with the Newsmax channel.
“We’re very close to getting it done and they have to get it done,” he said.
“If they don’t get it done, there’s going to be a lot of trouble out there, a lot of trouble, like they have never seen before.
“And they will get it done. And I understand there’s been a handshake and they’re getting it finished and maybe by the end of the week. But it has to take place, it has to take place.”
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Israeli official: Former Hamas leader held up deal
Speaking on Tuesday as negotiations resumed in Qatar, an anonymous Israeli official said that an agreement was “close, but we are not there”.
They accused Hamas of previously “dictating, not negotiating” but said this has changed in the last few weeks.
“Yahya Sinwar was the main obstacle for a deal,” they added.
Sinwar, believed to be the mastermind of the 7 October attacks, led Hamas following the assassination of his predecessor but was himself killed in October last year.
Under Sinwar, the Israeli official claimed, Hamas was “not in a rush” to bring a hostage deal but this has changed since his death and since the IDF “started to dismantle the Shia axis”.
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Biden: ‘Never, never, never, ever give up’
Iran ‘weaker than it’s been in decades’
Yesterday, President Biden also hailed Washington’s support for Israel during two Iranian attacks in 2024.
“All told, Iran is weaker than it’s been in decades,” the president said.
Mr Biden claimed America’s adversaries were weaker than when he took office four years ago and that the US was “winning the worldwide competition”.
“Compared to four years ago, America is stronger, our alliances are stronger, our adversaries and competitors are
weaker,” he said.
“We have not gone to war to make these things happen.”
The US president is expected to give a farewell address on Wednesday.
A draft ceasefire deal on the table between Israel and Hamas would see 33 hostages set free and a phased withdrawal of IDF forces from parts of Gaza.
President Joe Biden said an agreement to stop the fighting was “on the brink” and high level negotiations between the two sides resumed in Qatar on Tuesday.
The deal would see a number of things happen in a first stage, with negotiations for the second stage beginning in the third week of the ceasefire.
It would also allow a surge in humanitarian aid into Gaza, which has been devastated by more than a year of war.
Details of what the draft proposal entails have been emerging on Tuesday, reported by Israeli and Palestinian officials.
Relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages hold photos of their loved ones during a protest on 8 January. Pic: AP
Hostages to be returned
In the first stage of the potential ceasefire, 33 hostages would be set free.
These include women (including female soldiers), children, men over the age of 50, wounded and sick.
Israel believes most of these hostages are alive but there has not been any official confirmation from Hamas.
In return for the release of the hostages, Israel would free more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
People serving long sentences for deadly attacks would be included in this but Hamas fighters who took part in the 7 October attack would not be released.
An arrangement to prevent Palestinian “terrorists” from going back to the West Bank would be included in the deal, an anonymous Israeli official said.
Read more:
A timeline of events since the 7 October attacks
The hostages who still haven’t returned home
Smoke billows as buildings lie in ruin in Beit Hanoun in Gaza. Pic: Reuters
Phased Israeli withdrawal from Gaza
The agreement also includes a phased withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, with IDF troops remaining in the border perimeter to defend Israeli border towns and villages.
Security arrangements would be implemented at the Philadelphi corridor – a narrow strip of land that runs along the border between Egypt and Gaza – with Israel withdrawing from parts of it after the first few days of the deal.
The Rafah Crossing between Egypt and Gaza would start to work gradually to allow the crossing of people who are sick and other humanitarian cases out of Gaza for treatment.
Unarmed North Gaza residents would be allowed to return to their homes, with a mechanism introduced to ensure no weapons are moved there.
“We will not leave the Gaza Strip until all our hostages are back home,” the Israeli official said.
What will happen to Gaza in the future?
There is less detail about the future of Gaza – from how it will be governed, to any guarantees that this agreement will bring a permanent end to the war.
“The only thing that can answer for now is that we are ready for a ceasefire,” the Israeli official said.
“This is a long ceasefire and the deal that is being discussed right now is for a long one. There is a big price for releasing the hostages and we are ready to pay this price.”
The international community has said Gaza must be run by Palestinians, but there has not been a consensus about how this should be done – and the draft ceasefire agreement does not seem to address this either.
In the past, Israel has said it will not end the war leaving Hamas in power. It also previously rejected the possibility of the Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited governing powers in the West Bank, from taking over the administration of Gaza.
Since the beginning of its military campaign in Gaza, Israel has also said it would retain security control over the territory after the fighting ends.
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