‘Prime Minister, stop throwing us under the bus and make your mind up'

8 March 2024

‘The government should be supporting us, not throwing us under the bus’ says Fed chair after the Prime Minister tells police chiefs to end ‘mob rule’.

Luke Mitchell has responded to Rishi Sunak’s latest calls on police to ‘toughen up’ with protesters imposing ‘mob rule’ in Britain amid the ongoing pro-Palestine protests taking place.

The Prime Minister told police chiefs that he wants ‘more robust police responses’, after suggesting that ‘mob rule is replacing democratic rule’ - something that ‘all of us must change urgently’.

“Once again, the police are being used in a game of political football,” said Luke, adding: “We are being thrown under the bus here by the Prime Minister, who should be looking at ways to support officers, rather than pointing the finger. The finger needs to be pointed at him, his government and the damage they have caused over many many years.

“I agree, things need to change if we want to restore faith and trust in policing - but swaying public opinion like this, rather than coming out and suggesting ways to get behind our officers, is wrong.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has told police chiefs to end what he calls 'mob rule'.

“Our frontline cops are under pressure and working tirelessly, doing the best job possible - yet once again, instead of praising the Force, those with the power to make change, are criticising the job they’re doing. Officers are sick and tired of being used by this government, one minute we’re blamed for being heavy-handed during the pandemic and the next we’re too soft, what is it that the government want from the police service? I really don’t know.

“It honestly feels like we can’t do right from wrong at the moment - and it’s incredibly draining. This feels like another kick in the teeth, it’s no wonder so many of our officers are feeling let down by the system.”

Luke’s comments came after the Home Office announced a £31 million package aimed at protecting MPs, stating it was in response to the impact of the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.

Police bosses were summoned to Downing Street, where Mr Sunak urged them to ‘use existing powers to crack down on intimidation, disruption and subversion urgently’.

“We simply cannot allow this pattern of increasingly violent and intimidatory behaviour which is, as far as anyone can see, intended to shout down free debate and stop elected representatives from doing their job. That is simply undemocratic,” said the Prime Minister, who called for ‘more robust police responses to protect politicians and democratic processes’.

Police are being advised that the protests taking place outside MPs’ homes and offices should ‘trigger an immediate response’.

Luke continued: “Once again, it boils down to better funding. While I recognise, there are glitches in the current policing system, the only way to fix that is through better funding.

“If the Prime Minister wants to see the system to improve then it needs proper funding and our officers need to be paid better.

“Our Force, like every other one, is about to go into a difficult period where funding has been cut.

“The government will tell you we have more officers than ever, but we will see a huge reduction in police staff over the next two years - and the jobs they did will have to be done by police officers, so even more cops will be stuck behind a desk.”