Braverman sparks row with claim police tougher on the far-right than pro-Palestine ‘mobs’
Home secretary accuses force of being biased against far-right protesters while favouring groups such as Palestine Solidarity Campaign
Lee Harpin is the Jewish News's political editor
Suella Braverman has sparked a bitter row after claiming in a newspaper article that the police have been treating far-right extremists more harshly than pro-Palestinian “mobs”.
Writing for The Times the home secretary claimed that the recent Palestine marches in London were an unchallenged “assertion of primacy by certain groups – particularly Islamists – of the kind we are more used to seeing in Northern Ireland.”
The demos she suggested were ” disturbingly reminiscent of Ulster are the reports that some of Saturday’s march group organisers have links to terrorist groups, including Hamas.”
Braverman also wrote: “Rightwing and nationalist protesters who engage in aggression are rightly met with a stern response yet pro-Palestinian mobs displaying almost identical behaviour are largely ignored, even when clearly breaking the law? I have spoken to serving and former police officers who have noted this double standard.”
Her comments were widely condemned by politicians, both within her own party and across the opposition benches, and led to some calls for Rishi Sunak to sack Braverman.
The transport secretary Mark Harper was among senior Tories to openly criticise Braverman’s intervention suggesting he did not agree the police were biased.
“I think all police forces are focused on upholding the law without fear or favour,” he said. “That’s what they do.”
Sir Tom Winsor, a former government adviser and former chief inspector of constabulary, said on Thursday that Braverman had “crossed the line” in terms of the constitution and the operational independence of the police.
Labour’s Yvetter Cooper said Braverman’s article ” is a highly irresponsible, dangerous attempt to undermine respect for police at a sensitive time, to rip up operational independence and to inflame community tensions.”
Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London said:”The home secretary is playing on the fears of the Jewish community rather than addressing them.”
But in their statement the Community Security Trust appeared to back the home secretary saying it would “bring significant relief to our community if these demonstrations ended.”
Her article followed Sir Mark Rowley, the Met commissioner’s insistence that the threshold of serious disorder needed to ban the Armistice Day protest in London this Saturday was not met.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak met with Rowley on Wednesday and later confirmed “It’s welcome that the police have confirmed that the march will be away from the Cenotaph and they will ensure that the timings do not conflict with any Remembrance events. There remains the risk of those who seek to divide society using this weekend as a platform to do so.”
CST wants to cut through the noise surrounding the Home Secretary’s strong opposition to Saturday’s anti-Israel demonstration. pic.twitter.com/CO3fkserzD
— CST (@CST_UK) November 9, 2023
In the Commons on Thursday, shadow home secretary Cooper said Braverman was “encouraging extremists on all sides, attacking the police when she should be backing them.”
She added:” It is highly irresponsible and dangerous, and no other home secretary would ever have done this.”
Braverman was not in the House to answer questions on her comments, and the PM faced claims that Downing Street had signed off the home secretary’s article before it was published.
Policing minister Chris Philp, standing in for Braverman, who was at a hospital appointment for a close relative, remind MPs”There have been 98 arrests for antisemitic offences in the last four weeks. And I’ve been contacted this morning by members of the Jewish community who are deeply uneasy about what this weekend will bring.”
He added:”And it is reasonable for politicians, the prime minister, the home secretary and others, I’m sure some on the other side of the house as well, to raise those concerns and make sure that the police are protecting those communities.”
Chipping Barnet MP Theresa Villiers said she is “deeply troubled” by the idea of the march going ahead, although she recognised the “really difficult position” the police were in over banning them.
Villiers said that in “all her years representing the Jewish community in Chipping Barnet she says she has never known such fear amongst them.”
Philp said he would be raising the “fears of the Jewish community” at a meeting he has with the Met later on Thursday.
Braverman was earlier accused of poor judgement when she branded the Palestine demos as “hate marches”.
Previous demos have seen pockets of disorder and examples of protests carrying banners demonising Israel, and on some occasions supporting Hamas following the October 7th atrocities in Israel.
But police chiefs appear to support protest organisers claims that the vast majority of those on the protests are peaceful.
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