Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

Former Police Chiefs Warn UK is Drifting Towards 'Paramilitary' Style Policing With New Crime Bill

Former Police Chiefs Warn UK is Drifting Towards 'Paramilitary' Style Policing With New Crime Bill

The Police, Crime, Sentencing, and Courts Bill being pushed through parliament includes serious criminals being released half-way through their jail terms, as well as allowing up to ten-year sentences for "nuisance" protestors.

An ex-police chief issued a stark warning on Sunday that the UK's protest laws are moving Britain dangerously towards “paramilitary policing” and that lawmakers “flexing their muscles via their police forces” can be compared to the world's repressive regimes.

Michael Barton, the former chief constable of Durham and fellow former police leader Sir Peter Fahy told the Guardian that new protesting laws in parliament represent a threat to civil liberties, already diminished after a year of emergency coronavirus restrictions.

Currently passing through parliament, the Police, Crime, Sentencing, and Courts Bill will give further powers to officers to tackle protests, including protests that “intentionally or recklessly" cause "public nuisance” – defined partly as a “serious annoyance” or “serious inconvenience."

“I’m not in favour of even more restrictive measures. Surely after an historically unprecedented year-long curfew, in peacetime, the government could show some common sense and gratitude for such incredible forbearance to allow civil liberties to once again flourish," said Barton, who previously served as head of crime operations for policing across the country, and headed the Durham constabulary until 2019.

He then asked if the UK would be "happy to be linked to the repressive regimes currently flexing their muscles via their police forces?"

“Fortunately, in the UK we are not a paramilitary-style police force. But these powers dangerously edge in that direction. Police chiefs will be seen as the arbiters of what is and is not allowed when it comes to protest. Democracies thrive on protest. This government has condemned what has happened in the Ukraine but those same protesters would fall foul of our new laws."

Barton said the shift conflicted with the policing by consent arrangement, with law enforcement being “citizens in uniform” integrated within their communities as "police officers are telling people what to do, not negotiating with them."

“I don’t see anything wrong with the current laws. Protests sometimes means people are inconvenienced," he added.

Fahy, who was chief constable of Greater Manchester police and the former vice-chair of the police chiefs’ body, described the proposed laws as a mistake that policing in danger.

He accused the move as being "political driven" and pointed to the 1970s when trade unionists were nailed by the authorities.

“It is short-term and politically driven,” he said.

“It is a reaction to what happened with Extinction Rebellion and Black Lives Matter [protests], in the same way Ricky Tomlinson was a reaction to the industrial strife of the 1970s. Policing was drawn into a particular stance and pose."

He added that it reminded him of "the miners’ strike when policing was mobilised for a political reason."

"It took policing a long time to recover. Policing should be very careful not to be drawn into the situation of being arbiters of which protests can go ahead, and become stuck in the middle. The policing of protest can cause long-term damage."

Fahy continued, stressing that policing is "not always about the majority, sometimes it is about protecting rights of the minority. I’m not sure a mature democracy should have the police deciding which protests should go ahead."


​The new legislation also introduces a start and finish time for protests and establishes limitations on noise at static protests as well as on single-person demonstrations.

The comments come after 10 arrests were made on Friday during a “Kill the Bill” protest in opposition to the new proposed laws.

A report is scheduled to be published later this week about accusations against Metropolitan police officers of heavy-handed tactics at a vigil on Clapham Common for the late Sarah Everard earlier this month.

Officers were filmed grappling with women at the event, which led to calls for the resignation of Met commissioner Cressida Dick.

Home Secretary Priti Patel ordered a report, which is expected to come out on Monday or Tuesday from Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary, which will determine if the response was necessary.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
High-Stakes Trump-Putin Summit on Ukraine Underway in Alaska
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
×