Theresa Villiers MP joined her colleagues Mike Freer and Nicky Aiken at the weekend for a visit to the control centre run by the Met Police to oversee mass protests and big events in London.
Situated in Lambeth, the control centre has big screens linked to police CCTV and hosts a range of police teams working together on the recent marches on Gaza. Theresa, Mike and Nicky were shown around by Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist who has overall charge of policing the protests. They also had the chance to hear from Police Commander Colin Wingrove who was the 'gold commander' for Saturday's policing operation.
Following the visit, Theresa said, "I wanted to come here to see for myself the approach the police are taking to these protests. I am worried that the marches are making my Jewish constituents feel reluctant to visit central London."
"The police operation has come under intense scrutiny. My time as Northern Ireland Secretary means that I appreciate that public order policing involves complex and difficult decisions. It is always important to hear the context for an incident before reaching a conclusion on how the police handled it. Today's visit has given me valuable insight into the policing of these marches."
"I stressed during the visit to the control centre that every effort needs to go into ensuring that people responsible for hate crimes are arrested so they can be brought to justice. I know this is something that the police are taking very seriously. I will continue to scrutinise their approach to the protests."
Digital imprint: Promoted by Theresa Villiers MP of 163 High Street, Barnet, EN5 2AA.
