My letter of complaint to the IPCC - Bob Broadhurst must go!

Bob Broadhurst, the senior met officer in charge of the G20 operation (and public order operations in London) has been caught red handed misleading MP's in one of the key investigations around the G20.

PLEASE TAKE PART IN THE ACTION AT THE BOTTOM

Commander Bob Broadhurst, who had overall command of the G20 policing operation, told the home affairs select committee in May that "no plain clothes officers [were] deployed at all" during the demonstrations in the City of London.

It has emerged that 25 undercover City of London police were stationed around the Bank of England to gather "intelligence" on protesters on 1 and 2 April. Broadhurst stands by the evidence he gave to MPs, claiming the deployment of undercover officers was unknown to him.

.... Full Guardian piece,

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BROADHURST MUST GO!
In the face of this misinformation, on top of the catalogue of mistakes and misinformation Defend Peaceful Protest has witnessed Met Officers Bob Broadhurst and Chris Allison supply to the Metropolitan Police Authority, how can we trust either the competancy or honesty of these senior officers commenting on their own operations!

Dear Sir/Madam

I am writing to you about revelations in the Guardian indicating a senior Metropolitan police officer Bob Broadhurst has misled a House of Commons Select Committee.

After this recent news in the Guardian my trust and faith in our police force's honesty and integrity has been further dented.

The police Standards of Professional Behaviour set out the standards expected of police officers These include requirements to:

- Act with honesty and integrity
- Act in a manner that does not discredit or undermine public confidence in the police service.

I feel Bob Broadhurst has clearly failed to meet these standards of professional behaviour in his conduct in the investigations since the G20.

The IPCC is already investigating the Police media response following the death of Ian Tomlinson. As a concerned member of the public I am calling on the IPCC to investigate the misleading information provided to public bodies by senior police officer Bob Broadhurst. I would also like the committee to take into account the misleading information already documented below which senior Met Officers Bob Broadhurst and Chris Allision submitted

Yours Sincerely




xxxxxx xxxxx

(add your home address so the IPCC can log the complaint)

Further information on complaint:

Nature of incident:
Misinformation released on a number of occasions by chief officer Bob Broadhurst and his subordinates has made me lose all trust in the honesty and integrity of this officer and to some extent the police force as a whole.

Where the incident(s) occurred: There are several locations and teams which

1) Home Affairs Select Committee Hearing. Tuesday 19th May 2009 oral evidence hearing from Commander Bob Broadhurst, “Gold Commander” Operation Glencoe
Guardian Article*

2) MPA report, compiled by Bob Broadhurst and Chris Allison**



* Point 1) Bob Broadhursts evidence has been discredited by further evidence from city police here:

** Point 2) Bob Broadhurst and Chris Allison compiled a report which was riddled with inaccuracies, as documented here EV 42 - Q351 in the report

http://www.opendemocracy.net/blog/ourkingdom-theme/ourkingdom/2009/05/01/the-met-must-stop-spinning-g20-policing

Police feel the heat at the MPA, but no inquest for Ian Tomlinson’s family

The policing of the G20 demonstrations came in for yet more criticism today at the first public meeting of Met Police Authority’s civil liberties panel. But one family will be going away with no answers. There’s no news to whether the panel will investigate police spin surrounding the death of Ian Tomlinson despite a pointed question by Paul Lewis.

This issue has yet to be properly addressed by any of the previous bodies who have investigated G20. It’s simply not good enough that the police have been able to make totally fallacious statements about the death of a man and spread other misinformation about the nature of the G20 protests and get away with it. To establish itself as a body with teeth, the Metropolitan Police Authority must include this in its investigation. Police communications to the media and the general public are a critical part of this whole saga but no-one in a position of authority has made it an issue.

Accountability aside, the future at least looks a bit brighter. If HMIC’s final report on ‘Adapting to Protest’ develops as we hope, a sea change in policing of protest could be on the way. There was something of a consensus at this meeting that the police must change their ways. The following points were particularly prominent in submissions to the panel from members of the public and protest groups present.

Officers not displaying ID – There was strong agreement on this point. Police excuses that they are down to flimsy numerals are simply not acceptable. The ease with which Police ID can be removed is not only long overdue for altering but is an excuse for rogue officers to cover their tracks when overstepping their authority. As was seen clearly in the treatment of Emily Apple at Kingsnorth and with the officer who clubbed Ian Tomlinson it’s invariably those to have something to hide who are caught not wearing ID.

Kettling of Protestors - unsurprisingly this came in for another hammering from members of the audience as a utterly appalling tactic. In my view the members of the panel didn’t go far enough on this issue. At the meeting I asked them to specifically state that kettling should only be used as a last resort in situations of violent disorder and is never appropriate. It was not clear from this session whether they will make that recommendation.

Training of officers in public order - We saw from the Channel 4 dispatches documentary that police still train with petrol bombs, despite the fact that none have been used in a protest in 29 years since the Broadwater farm riots. The lack of conflict management skills evident in many front line officers at the G20 and other protests is something that members of the panel voiced considerable concern at.

‘Lawful’ and ‘Peaceful’ protest the distinction between these is crucial, as recent revelations about protestors being branded domestic extremists makes clear. It appears the view of the panel (and equally importantly Her Majesties Inspectorate of the Constabulary) is supportive of those who have questioned the view of some senior police officers that ‘unlawful’ demonstrations are illegitimate. An element of civil disobedience can be crucial in generating public pressure for legislative change. The suffragettes and civil rights movements illustrated this in the past and the environmental movement epitomises it today

The key question from all of this is whether the civil liberties panel will get its recommendations implemented. In meetings in April and May, Met. commissioners Bob Broadhurst and Chris Allison failed to give adequate answers to questions on everything from intrusive surveillance to the uniform review to containment. I remain to be convinced of senior officer’s commitment to change.