Prosecutors have failed to act after an assault on police so we are doing their job for them

Despite compelling CCTV footage, the Crown Prosecution Service has not charged anyone over Manchester Airport attack

17 November 2024- Daily Telegraph 

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Policing by consent has always been central to Britain’s model of policing, since the days of Robert Peel, the founder of the Metropolitan Police. Critically this means having public approval and support, trust in officers, as well as community-based relationships.

The unspoken part of this contract is that it relies on officers serving by consent, putting themselves in harm’s way, usually unarmed. Officers trust that they will be fairly protected and looked after when trouble occurs. They know they will be held accountable and must hold themselves to a higher standard of behaviour and performance.

Everything breaks down if that trust is broken and officers fear they will be abandoned, or used as cannon fodder to suit the political motive of their bosses, other authorities and mainstream politicians. Experienced officers will leave, good people will not join the police and officers will be reluctant to join specialist teams such as firearms units.

Assaulting a police officer is rightly considered beyond the pale and must be treated promptly and robustly. This is why many millions of British citizens support Reform UK’s plan to step in and privately prosecute the assailants of four officers who suffered a vicious, violent attack on July 23 at Manchester Airport.

Despite compelling CCTV footage, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has not charged the two alleged assailants almost four months later. This is despite us serving notice to them on Oct 7 that if they were not going to do their job, then we would do it for them by running a private criminal prosecution against the assailants.

This all seems inexplicable until one digs a bit further. When the CPS wants to send a strong message it can, such as bringing rapid charges and trials, based on CCTV footage, of those involved in disorder and riots in summer 2024. This suited the Prime Minister, who had publicly spoken of his desire that people would be dealt with promptly and severely. Prison space was cleared to make way for people being sentenced.

They received brutal beating

But with the Manchester Airport incident, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is investigating the self-defensive actions of the officers towards the end of the brutal beating they received by the assailants.

The CCTV evidence is crystal clear: four officers were floored by two individuals in a rapid, ferocious attack. Bones were broken of one female police officer. The officers must have wondered what was going on, why were they being attacked so aggressively. Split-second reactions and judgments were being made by the officers to save themselves and possibly protect other members of the public.

In years gone by, the IOPC would have paused its inquiry until after the CPS had finished its work. Now the reverse is the case, it appears the CPS is awaiting the IOPC investigation.

Not surprisingly, police officers across the country are furious with the CPS delay and this IOPC approach. Many have thanked us for standing up for the front-line officers.

We at Reform UK will not stand for two-tier justice and two-tier policing.

We have instructed TM Eye Ltd, one of Britain’s leading private prosecutors with more than 1,000 successful prosecutions under its belt, to do this private prosecution. It has today written to the Greater Manchester Police and CPS confirming this and setting the ball in motion.

We have secured the funding to carry this all the way to conclusion. We are also making it clear to the CPS that we will not tolerate it hijacking our prosecution, then dropping it for political reasons later on.

We at Reform will stand up for police officers even if the CPS and IOPC will not.