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Police 'must not hide ID numbers' G20 police action 'unacceptable'
(about 2 hours later)
It is "utterly unacceptable" for police officers to hide their identifying badges from the public, the in-coming Chief Inspector of Police has said. The actions of some police officers at the G20 protest were "unacceptable", the incoming Chief Inspector of Constabulary has said.
Ex-senior Met officer Denis O'Connor, who is heading a probe into the policing of the G20 protests, said the police had to be "accountable". Denis O'Connor, who is investigating police tactics, said it was also "utterly unacceptable" for officers to hide their badges from the public.
"It is utterly unacceptable and that is that," he told the House of Commons home affairs committee. His points were echoed by Nick Hardwick, head of the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).
Mr O'Connor will be looking into three cases of alleged G20 police brutality. The two men were giving evidence to the Commons Home Affairs committee.
He will examine the death of newspaper seller Ian Tomlinson, as well as the tactics officers employed on the day such as the "kettling" of protesters, which sees them confined to a specific area for hours at a time. Mr O'Connor said: "My concern was obviously about the individual incidents where officers, on the face of it, appeared to break with their colleagues and assault people.
Name badges "We in this country expect the very best from our police, quite properly, and police officers who give their lives - as Gary Toms did, sadly, very recently (PC Toms died last week after trying to stop a fleeing vehicle) - they do it for a very noble cause.
He said he wanted to look at the whole picture of what happened, not just the "snapshots" seen in the media but he said he was starting with the "pre-conception" that officers should display their numerals at all times. "So when you see something that does not square with that noble cause, it is disappointing and hugely concerning."
Constables and sergeants are required to display their numbers but senior ranks are not. He added: "What I saw was unacceptable."
Some police officer removed theirs before the G20 protest because they were worried about false accusations being made against them and being filmed or photographed, but Mr O'Connor said he did not accept those arguments. 'Snapshots'
Mr O'Connor will be looking into three cases of alleged G20 police brutality, including the death of newspaper seller Ian Tomlinson, as well as the tactics officers employed on the day such as the "kettling" of protesters, which sees them confined to a specific area for hours at a time.
What I saw did not impress me that it's the British way Dennis Connor, incoming HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary
He said he would be examining kettling "in terms of avoiding disruption and also the cost of what is achieved".
He said he wanted to look at the whole picture of what happened at the G20 protests, not just the "snapshots" seen in the media but he said he was starting with the "preconception" that officers should display their identifying numbers at all times.
Constables and sergeants are currently meant to display their numbers but senior ranks are not.
Some police officers removed their numbers before the G20 protest because they were worried about false accusations being made against them and being filmed or photographed, but Mr O'Connor said he did not accept those arguments, as the police had to be "accountable" to the public at all times.
And he said his probe would look at whether all officers should be forced to wear name badges, which are currently not compulsory.And he said his probe would look at whether all officers should be forced to wear name badges, which are currently not compulsory.
'British way'
Mr O'Connor will also look at the widely differing tactics used by police forces in dealing with public order situations, from climate camp protests and G20 to the lighter touch displayed by the Metropolitan Police in containing the protest by Tamils in Parliament Square.Mr O'Connor will also look at the widely differing tactics used by police forces in dealing with public order situations, from climate camp protests and G20 to the lighter touch displayed by the Metropolitan Police in containing the protest by Tamils in Parliament Square.
He said there had been no advance intelligence on violent protests ahead of the Tamil demonstration.He said there had been no advance intelligence on violent protests ahead of the Tamil demonstration.
On the G20 protest, said the incident in which an officer slapped Nicola Fisher and hit her with his baton was "unacceptable" adding: "What I saw did not impress me that it's the British way." On the G20 protest, he said the incident in which an officer slapped Nicola Fisher and hit her with his baton was "unacceptable" adding: "What I saw did not impress me that it's the British way."
Mr O'Connor is Home Secretary Jacqui Smith's preferred candidate to be the next Chief Inspector of Constabulary, although his appointment has to be confirmed by the home affairs committee.Mr O'Connor is Home Secretary Jacqui Smith's preferred candidate to be the next Chief Inspector of Constabulary, although his appointment has to be confirmed by the home affairs committee.
His interim report is due by end of June, with the final report to be published in September. Mr O'Connor's interim report is due by end of June, with the final report to be published in September.
Mr Hardwick said the IPCC has received 185 complaints from G20 protests, including more than 50 complaints from members of the public who say they were assaulted or witnessed an assault.
He said the IPCC received twice as many complaints from the 2001 Countryside Alliance protests.
'Ugly' scenes
He said the severity of the G20 complaints and injuries alleged is greater - although the difference may be accounted for by the presence of "citizen journalists" with mobile phone cameras at the G20 protest.
"One of the consequences of this exposure through citizen journalism is that we will all see much more clearly what it is - and sometimes it looks ugly - what we expect the police to do," he told MPs.
He said there was a need for police to explain better so-called "distraction" techniques they are trained to use in violent confrontations, which he said was a "euphemism" for "kicking, hitting, punching".
It "looks ugly" on the television - but police are trained to use these techniques as long as the force used is reasonable and proportionate and they should not "wash their hands" of this fact.
Mr Hardwick said he made the decision to do a "rigorous, hands-on" assessment of Mr Tomlinson's death to see if he came into contact with the police before he collapsed.
The evidence initially was that there was not any contact, so at first the IPCC decided not to conduct an independent investigation.
He said the police should not have rushed out a statement under media pressure to say there had been no contact with Mr Tomlinson but he was not surprised they did as "they have done it before".
He also owned up to a "mistake" when he said there was no CCTV in the area where Mr Tomlinson collapsed.
"I made a mistake. It's a personal mistake I made. I misunderstood the briefing I'd had, of course there were CCTV cameras in the area," he told MPs.
A policeman has already been interviewed under caution on suspicion of manslaughter after new tests overturned the initial post-mortem into the cause of Mr Tomlinson's death.
Mr Tomlinson, 47, was filmed being struck and pushed over by a police officer. A fresh post-mortem examination found he died of abdominal bleeding, not a heart attack, as first thought.