Dear Home Secretary,
We are a broad coalition of organisations representing victims of misuse of police powers, as well as human rights and civil liberties groups. We write to express our deep concern over the government’s response to the Rapid Review into police accountability where your Department sets out plans to change the legal test on police officers’ self-defence following the use of force and consult on the law on inquest conclusions.
Since your response was published, there have been significant developments on the issue of police accountability including the announcement in the policing white paper of further reviews into police timeliness and accountability, debates on government plans to provide blanket anonymity to firearms officers during criminal trials and an announcement that there will be a delay in the misconduct hearing into PC Martyn Blake over the shooting of Chris Kaba.
Given these important developments, we, as representatives of civil society organisations concerned with policing, request an update meeting with you. In the interim, we ask that you urgently reconsider harmful measures to change the legal test on police officers’ self-defence, taking fully into account the following key points.
Click on the link below to read the full letter.