On Wednesday 5 February, Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Dame Cressida Dick led a team of senior officers who addressed the Police and Crime Committee of the London Assembly (London’s regional government) on policing priorities in the capital.
Their topics included: how police should respond to Extinction Rebellion and associated protests; the growth of private ‘police’ forces; tackling financial fraud; and the dismal failure of Operation Midland, the anti-paedophile operation which turned out to have been based on a tissue of lies.
In the wake of the terrorist incident in Streatham, South London, which occurred only days before, how to handle terrorism in the UK was also high on the agenda.
Dame Cressida mounted a robust defence of the surveillance team which shot and killed Sudesh Ammam (20) after he stabbed two people. She also stressed the importance of inter-agency strategies to prevent people becoming violent extremists, and invited members of the public to suggest to the police how this could best be accomplished.
Assistant commissioner Neil Basu added that “part of the solution must be ensuring that those who pose the greatest threat to our society are removed from it.” That would mean prison for as long as it takes to keep the city safe.
The Commissioner warned would-be terrorists they would have no hiding place in London.
