Life for killing police “should not be just a soundbite”
PRIME Minister Theresa May’s vow that life should mean life for the murder of police officers is little more than a soundbite, South Yorkshire Police Federation has said.
Chairman Neil Bowles said the comment by the then-Home Secretary illustrated the Government’s “failure to protect its own citizens”.
He said: “Life means Life for the murder of police officers – yet another soundbite from the worst Home Secretary to hold office.
“You would have thought this would be a pretty simple promise to keep, but it’s just another failure of Government to protect the Police and so protect its own citizens.”
Mr Bowles’ comments came as the service marked the 50th anniversary of the brutal killing of three officers who were killed in cold blood. Two of the three convicted killers have been released from jail.
The families of Metropolitan Police officers DS Christopher Head, DC David Wombwell and PC Geoffrey Fox gathered for a memorial service at the site of the 1966 Braybrook Street killings earlier this month.
The Braybrook Massacre in West London led to the formation of the Police Dependants’ Trust (PDT) charity. Wreaths were laid by Ken Marsh, Chairman of the Metropolitan Police Federation; Gill Scott-Moore, PDT chief executive; and Met Deputy Commissioner Craig Mackey.
Speaking at the ceremony earlier this month, Steve White, Chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said: “Three criminals opened fire on the unarmed officers, leaving their children fatherless and their wives widows. One died in prison, another was released 15 years ago and the third, who came out of jail in 2014, was free to take his driving test just months later. Meanwhile relatives of the fallen officers have been condemned to a life sentence without their loved ones.
“And police officers are still losing their lives and being maimed on the streets. We’ve got the law changed so that those convicted of murdering police officers will now be sentenced to life but now we say there should be harsher sentences for thugs who assault police officers instead of the punishment-lite that we see all too often.”
Mr White added: “The latest Government figures show that there were 23,000 assaults on police officers last year. That’s 63 a day and quite frankly, that’s unacceptable. Assaults should not just be ‘part of the job’ and derisory sentences – which is what we have come to accept – are not deterrents.”
The Police Federation is mounting a campaign to seek more severe sentences for offenders who attack police and is in talks with the Home Office to try to change the sentencing guidelines.