Assaults on officers increase despite fall in crime
23 June 2020
Provisional figures released by the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) show that police recorded crime across England and Wales has fallen by 18 per cent in the four weeks until 7 June this year when compared with the same period last year.
However, assaults on emergency service workers have increased by a worrying 24 per cent.
Sarah Cooper, chair of West Mercia Police Federation, said that while crime statistics may show a decrease, the fact that attacks on police officers had risen by such a large amount is hugely concerning.
“Assaulting any emergency service worker is completely unacceptable and I have already raised concerns at a strategic level regarding the numbers of our officers who are being assaulted in the course of their duties. It can never be accepted that an officer comes to work, to serve the public and gets attacked doing so,” says Sarah.
“It is even more worrying that during a time when police officers are on the front-line protecting communities and the NHS from a deadly virus, people think it is OK to attack, spit at and cough in the face of brave emergency service workers. I aim to personally contact every officer in our Force who is assaulted and it is clear that these numbers are increasing. I think we need to understand the reason for this and I am keen to work with the Force and the PCC’s office to progress this.
“Nobody should have to put up with being assaulted during a day’s work. It is only right that the people who carry out these abhorrent crimes are brought to justice. Unfortunately, all too often, the feedback I am getting is that charging decisions and sentences at court are woefully lenient. In my view, a strong message needs to be sent out through the criminal justice system that these offences against our officers will not be tolerated.
“Officers currently are often left feeling unsupported and let down by a system that does not appear to treat these offences seriously enough. We also need to understand and address the significant number of officers who are attacked by individuals suffering mental health crisis. Unfortunately, it would appear that the police are, once again, taking the brunt of other under-resourced public sector services and this is not acceptable, particularly when colleagues are being injured in the process.”
John Apter, national chair of the Police Federation of England and Wales, has also condemned the increase in attacks.
“The lockdown restrictions have prevented criminal activity, which is a good thing for the public. The slight increase shows that as the lockdown has lessened, the opportunities to commit crime has increased,” he explained.
“It is of serious concern that, while overall crime has dropped, assaults on emergency workers have increased by 24 per cent. I do not accept any excuses for this rise - any violence shown towards police officers or any emergency workers must be taken seriously by the criminal justice system and should send the message that this is completely unacceptable.”
The provisional figures published by the NPCC do show that crime may be starting to increase again.
The 18 per cent fall recorded most recently compares to a 28 per cent fall for the four weeks to 12 April and the 25 per cent fall for the four weeks to 10 May. This is put down to the effect of lockdown restrictions easing and more people being allowed out of their homes, creating more opportunities for criminals.
NPCC chair Martin Hewitt said: “The vast majority of the public have followed the rules in place to limit the spread of the virus, and as a result we have seen sustained reductions in crime over the course of the lockdown period. It is no surprise that as more people are able to move around freely, we will begin to see movement towards previous levels, however this is a gradual change. We are reassured to still be observing significant falls in crime overall.”
