Disgust at rise in assaults

1 October 2020

Hertfordshire Police Federation chair Geoff Bardell says he’s disgusted at a steep rise in attacks on front-line workers that has been driven by assaults on police officers.

Geoff was speaking after the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) released new figures which show a 29 per cent increase on emergency services workers in the four weeks to 30 August compared to the same period in 2019.

The NPCC said: “The rise may be driven by increases in common assaults on police constables, including suspects spitting on officers while claiming to be infected with Covid-19”.

Geoff said: “It’s absolutely disgusting that our brave members and their colleagues in the other emergency services should face assaults just for doing their job.

“They are the ones who have been on the front-line during the Covid-19 pandemic, putting themselves in harm’s way to protect the public.

“It’s appalling that they should be subjected to any attacks, let alone where Covid-19 is potentially used as a weapon against them.

“I hope that in dealing with these offenders courts use the maximum possible sentences available to them because this is unacceptable.”

The NPCC figures show that crime trends have returned close to pre-lockdown levels. After a 28 per cent reduction at the height of lockdown, police recorded crime is now three per cent lower than in the same period in 2019.

Mental health incidents were up five per cent in this reporting period, the NPCC said, reported rape saw a four per cent rise and domestic abuse incidents increased by seven per cent.

John Apter, chair of the national Police Federation, said: “The recent return to pre-Covid crime levels comes as no surprise, as during lockdown there were fewer people out and therefore less opportunities to commit crime.

“Regrettably, I am not surprised either to see the rise in the number of call outs for mental health incidents. This has been steadily increasing year on year and the police are often seen as the first port of call when people need help.

“My colleagues will continue to do their job to the best of their ability but, as I have said many times before, there is no magic box of extra officers waiting to be opened, and undoubtedly policing will struggle with this increased demand.”