New crime figures revealing a 26 per cent rise in assaults against emergency workers show that the courts need to get tougher on those who carry out these despicable attacks, says Staffordshire Police Federation chair Phil Jones.
New crime figures were released by the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) yesterday with the rise in assaults thought to be driven by increases in common assaults on the police, including suspects spitting on officers while claiming to be infected with Covid-19.
Phil said: “Police officers and other emergency service workers have been on the frontline of the nation’s response to the pandemic. They have put their own health at risk, and feared taking back the virus to their family members, so that they could maintain public services and yet there are simply too many people who are prepared to violently attack them while they go about their duties.
“It was shocking to see last year how quickly these mindless individuals sought to weaponise Covid-19 by spitting or coughing over police officers and other blue light personnel while claiming to have the virus.
“This has to stop and I believe the key to this will be for the courts to hand down the maximum sentences available to them when these despicable offenders are brought before them.”
National Police Federation chair John Apter has also responded to the release of the figures.
He explained: “This increased level of violence is not just a one-off. It is becoming the new norm which is completely unacceptable. Violence in our society is not just a policing issue, all parts of Government and society itself must work together to combat this alarming increase.
“Part of this is ensuring those responsible for attacking police officers face a suitable deterrent in court. The sentencing guidelines have been changed, so we need judges and magistrates to use these powers to set an example to those who are assaulting our colleagues, those responsible must spend time in prison. This unjustified violence is a stain on society and needs to be dealt with robustly.”
The latest crime figures cover the four-week period ending 11 April 2021 and are compared with the equivalent period in 2019, rather than 2020. This is to allow comparisons with a more normal time-period, since the national lockdown in place at the same time last year (2020) was associated with notable reductions in demands on the police.
NPCC chair Martin Hewitt commented: “The fall across most of these figures, compared to 2019, shows that we’re still seeing the impact of lockdown, despite the further easing of restrictions in May. That said, we are anticipating crime levels to return to pre-pandemic levels in the coming months, as we did across the summer in 2020.”
He added: “The number of assaults against emergency workers continues to show a troubling rise. This is unacceptable. We will use the full force of the law to prosecute anyone who uses violence against those who are on the frontline. Officers and staff are out in communities, working in challenging circumstances, and I am grateful for their continued hard work.”
