Police ‘immensely brave’ but forces were unprepared for summer riots, says report
Police forces need to be better prepared for serious violence and disorder, according to a review of the response to this summer’s riots.
The report also found police failed to realise the significance of a number of events leading up to the riots, leaving gaps in intelligence linked to social media and the dark web.
Violence flared across the country following the deaths of three schoolgirls in a knife attack in Southport in Merseyside in July.
The unrest and disorder continued for several days.
In September, the home secretary asked His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services to carry out a rapid review into the policing response to the disorder.
The first part of the report, which is published today, said that officers had showed “immense bravery and personal sacrifice” throughout the disorder but that forces were unprepared for the scale of the rioting.
It said the decision by the National Police Chiefs’ Council to implement a national mobilisation plan on 6 August was made too late and should have been activated four days earlier.
The inspectorate said a number of events in 2023 and 2024 were indicators of potential future disorder but this had not been reflected in police intelligence reviews.
“Our assessment of these incidents suggests that the risks of disorder were greater than the police believed them to be,” it said. “They involved extreme nationalist sentiment, aggravated activism or serious disorder.”
The incidents included demonstrations organised by Tommy Robinson, unrest in Leeds and Cardiff and violence on Armistice Day in London.
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Two months on, Sky’s Shingi Mararike revisits the scene of one of the summer riots
The report also concluded that the dress code initially handed down by commanders could have left officers vulnerable to injury.
His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Constabulary, Andy Cooke, told Sky News: “Officers shouldn’t have to stand there and be subjected to that level of barrage that we saw.
“Policing needs to look again at how quickly it mobilises more resources in these instances to actually ensure that those officers aren’t stood in these lines for so long, that different tactics can be used. To do different tactics you need more resources.
“Getting officers to these locations where there are problems quickly is a critical part of that.”
The report praised the dedication and bravery of police. Pic: PA
He praised the dedication and bravery of officers who had protected the public. Some 302 officers were injured in the violence, with more than 50 needing hospital treatment.
He said some of the most sustained violence was faced by officers who came under siege while protecting hotels housing migrants.
Female officers and those from minority backgrounds bore the brunt of the attacks.
The quick identification of suspects helped end the disorder, says the report Pic: PA/CPS
‘A complex situation’
The inspectorate found the speedy identification and prosecution of hundreds of people involved in the riots helped to bring an end to the violence.
The National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for public disorder, Chief Constable BJ Harrington said it was encouraging the report acknowledged “the immense bravery and professionalism” of officers.
He said the finding that the national mobilisation plan should have been made earlier was a “helpful recommendation”.
He added: “Hindsight can be useful, and these learnings are important, but we are pleased that the Inspectorate also recognise how complex of a situation this was for policing to respond to, and that on the whole, the service did so well.”
In Walton on Merseyside, where rioters burned down a community library, there was broad support for the efforts of police to control to the summer’s disorder.
The Spellow Community Hub and Library reopened last week and the city council’s head of libraries Alicia Smith said: “Our emergency services were amazing.”
A second report from the inspectorate, which will look at social media misinformation among other things, is due to be published in the spring.
Mr Cooke said the focus should be on being prepared: “I doubt it will be another 14 years before we see serious disorder. I hope it is, but I doubt it.”
The dates for Donald Trump’s state visit to the UK have been announced, with the US president due to be welcomed by the King from 17 to 19 September.
Buckingham Palace also confirmed that President Trump and first lady Melania will be hosted by the King and Queen at Windsor Castle.
It was expected that the three-day state visit would take place in September after Mr Trump let slip earlier in April that he believed that was when his second “fest” was being planned for.
Windsor was also anticipated to be the location after the US president told reporters in the Oval Office that the letter from the King said Windsor would be the setting. Refurbishment works at Buckingham Palace also meant that Windsor was used last week for French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit.
This will be Mr Trump’s second state visit to the UK, an unprecedented gesture towards an American leader, having previously been invited to Buckingham Palace in 2019.
Donald Trump and Melania Trump posing with Charles and Camilla in 2019. Pic: Reuters
He has also been to Windsor Castle before, in 2018, but despite the considerable military pageantry of the day, and some confusion around inspecting the guard, it was simply for tea with Queen Elizabeth II.
Further details of what will happen during the three-day visit in September will be announced in due course.
On Friday, Sky News revealed it is now unlikely that the US president will address parliament, usually an honour given to visiting heads of state as part of their visit. Some MPs had raised significant concerns about him being given the privilege.
But the House of Commons will not be sitting at the time of Mr Trump’s visit as it will rise for party conference season on the 16 September, meaning the president will not be able to speak in parliament as President Macron did during his state visit this week. However, the House of Lords will be sitting.
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Labour MP: ‘Trump isn’t welcome here’
In February this year, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer presented the US president with the letter from the King inviting him to visit during a meeting at the White House.
After reading it, Mr Trump said it was a “great, great honour”, adding “and that says at Windsor – that’s really something”.
In February, Sir Keir Starmer revealed a letter from the King inviting Donald Trump to the UK. Pic: Reuters
In the letter, the King suggested they might meet at Balmoral or Dumfries House in Scotland first before the much grander state visit. However, it is understood that, although all options were explored, complexities in both the King and Mr Trump’s diaries meant it wasn’t possible.
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Is the UK ready for a ‘Trump-fest’?
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King and Trump won’t hold private meeting
This week, it emerged that Police Scotland are planning for a summer visit from the US president, which is likely to see him visit one or both of his golf clubs in Aberdeenshire and Ayrshire, and require substantial policing resources and probably units to be called in from elsewhere in the UK.
Precedent for second-term US presidents, who have already made a state visit, is usually tea or lunch with the monarch at Windsor Castle, as was the case for George W Bush and Barack Obama.
A small plane has crashed at Southend Airport in Essex.
Essex Police said it was at the scene of a “serious incident”.
Images posted online showed huge flames and a large cloud of black smoke, with one witness saying they saw a “fireball”.
A police statement said: “We were alerted shortly before 4pm to reports of a collision involving one 12-metre plane.
“We are working with all emergency services at the scene now and that work will be ongoing for several hours.
“We would please ask the public to avoid this area where possible while this work continues.”
A huge fireball near the airport. Pic: Ben G
It has been reported that the plane involved in the incident is a Beech B200 Super King Air.
According to flight-tracking service Flightradar, it took off at 3.48pm and was bound for Lelystad, a city in the Netherlands.
One man, who was at Southend Airport with his family around the time of the incident, said the aircraft “crashed headfirst into the ground”.
John Johnson said: “About three or four seconds after taking off, it started to bank heavily to its left, and then within a few seconds of that happening, it more or less inverted and crashed.
“There was a big fireball. Obviously, everybody was in shock in terms of witnessing it. All the kids saw it and the families saw it.”
Mr Johnson added that he phoned 999 to report the crash.
Southend Airport said the incident involved “a general aviation aircraft”.
Four flights scheduled to take off from Southend this afternoon were cancelled, according to its website.
Flightradar data shows two planes that had been due to land at Southend were diverted to nearby airports London Gatwick and London Stansted.
Plumes of black smoke. Pic: UKNIP
Essex County Fire and Rescue Service said four crews, along with off-road vehicles, have attended the scene.
Four ambulances and four hazardous area response team vehicles are also at the airport, as well as an air ambulance, the East of England Ambulance Service said.
Its statement described the incident as “still developing”.
Fire engines at the airport
David Burton-Sampson, the MP for Southend West and Leigh, posted on social media: “I am aware of an incident at Southend Airport. Please keep away and allow the emergency services to do their work.
“My thoughts are with everyone involved.”
Local councillor Matt Dent said on X: “At present all I know is that a small plane has crashed at the airport. My thoughts are with all those involved, and with the emergency services currently responding to the incident.”
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UK
Heidi Alexander says ‘fairness’ will be government’s ‘guiding principle’ when it comes to taxes at next budget
Another hint that tax rises are coming in this autumn’s budget has been given by a senior minister.
Speaking to Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander was asked if Sir Keir Starmer and the rest of the cabinet had discussed hiking taxes in the wake of the government’s failed welfare reforms, which were shot down by their own MPs.
Trevor Phillips asked specifically if tax rises were discussed among the cabinet last week – including on an away day on Friday.
Politics Hub: Catch up on the latest
Tax increases were not discussed “directly”, Ms Alexander said, but ministers were “cognisant” of the challenges facing them.
Asked what this means, Ms Alexander added: “I think your viewers would be surprised if we didn’t recognise that at the budget, the chancellor will need to look at the OBR forecast that is given to her and will make decisions in line with the fiscal rules that she has set out.
“We made a commitment in our manifesto not to be putting up taxes on people on modest incomes, working people. We have stuck to that.”
Ms Alexander said she wouldn’t comment directly on taxes and the budget at this point, adding: “So, the chancellor will set her budget. I’m not going to sit in a TV studio today and speculate on what the contents of that budget might be.
“When it comes to taxation, fairness is going to be our guiding principle.”
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Afterwards, shadow home secretary Chris Philp told Phillips: “That sounds to me like a barely disguised reference to tax rises coming in the autumn.”
He then went on to repeat the Conservative attack lines that Labour are “crashing the economy”.
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Chris Philp also criticsed the government’s migration deal with France
Mr Philp then attacked the prime minister as “weak” for being unable to get his welfare reforms through the Commons.
Discussions about potential tax rises have come to the fore after the government had to gut its welfare reforms.
Sir Keir had wanted to change Personal Independence Payments (PIP), but a large Labour rebellion forced him to axe the changes.
With the savings from these proposed changes – around £5bn – already worked into the government’s sums, they will now need to find the money somewhere else.
The general belief is that this will take the form of tax rises, rather than spending cuts, with more money needed for military spending commitments, as well as other areas of priority for the government, such as the NHS.
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