Public urged to support policing as new tiers are announced

24 November 2020

The secretary of Hertfordshire Police Federation is encouraging people to continue playing their part in preventing the spread of coronavirus following the announcement of tougher regional tiers.

Al Wollaston says the public has been “working with officers every step of the way” since the outbreak of the pandemic.

And he urged people to continue to be supportive as the new measures come into force next week.

“This has been an extremely challenging period for our members as we police the pandemic while continuing to do all the other things the public expect of us,” Al said.

“Our members have been on the frontline since the start of this pandemic and they have had support from the vast majority of people.

“Our communities have been working with my colleagues every step of the way so far, and we hope that will continue when the new measures come into effect next Thursday.

“As a Federation, we’re seeking more clarity about what will be involved. The restrictions have been introduced by Government to try to stop the spread of this deadly virus and, while it’s up to my colleagues to enforce them, we would encourage people to continue working with us to help save lives.”

Al’s comments come as Prime Minister Boris Johnson last night set out a new three-tier system of Covid-19 restrictions for England.

The regional rules will replace the current national measures and are set to run from 3 December until spring.

The Government will announce which areas of England will be in which tiers on Thursday, but more areas are expected to be placed into higher tiers.

Ché Donald, national vice-chair of the Police Federation, said the new rules could be difficult to enforce, particularly if there’s a relaxation over Christmas.

“Police officers are human beings who are doing an extraordinary job in extraordinary circumstances,” he said.

“However, a potential short-term relaxation of Covid-19 regulations and a return to the tier system represents a unique challenge and will be next to impossible to police.

“We will not be trying to spoil people’s fun or ruin Christmas - we’re trying to stop this deadly virus taking more lives. The vast majority of the public understand this and support us.

“However, we’ve also been criticised by some for enforcing too much – while others have said it’s not enough.

“A limited break in restrictions may also introduce scenarios where travelling across the UK to visit family could be a breach of regulations one day and not the next.

“My colleagues will step up to this challenge - as they have many times since the lockdown began in March.

“But our message to the Government is police officers need clearer and more consistent rules which can be enforced fairly, and the public need clearer instructions so that they know what they are allowed to do within the law.”

Read the Government’s Winter Covid-19 Plan.