We couldn't cope with another riot, say Manchester police officers July 03, 2012

Rank-and-file police say they have ‘grave concerns’ whether they could cope with another summer of riots in Manchester and Salford. They said only 150 police officers were available on the first night of trouble last Auguste. And, they warn, that as hundreds of police have left cash-strapped Greater Manchester Police since the riots, many cops believe they would not be able to cope with a repeat. Ian Hanson, chairman of the Greater Manchester Police Federation, said: “If we find ourselves in a similar position this year, then we have real concerns, grave concerns as to whether GMP can cope in the same way as we did last year. “Last year, we only just coped and that was a testimony to the fantastic efforts of every police officer in Greater Manchester. “Since last year, we have lost 700 more police officers in Greater Manchester, which is enough to man a large territorial police division. The force strength is heading down to 6,500 officers. This is what 20 per cuts looks like. “We can only do what we can do. I do have sympathy with the chief constable in that he’s trying to keep the wheel on. Being realistic, with a dwindling thin blue line, how are we supposed to cope? I have grave concerns about that. “At one stage last year, the superintendent in charge had to take the unprecedented step of withdrawing from Salford for about 30 minutes. That was a monumental decision. We went back later with resources that were arriving all the time. But it was regrettable and reflects on sparse resources we had available on the first night.”

A G4S plod service armed with dodgy weapons is not something to look forward to....

We need to show them some alternatives

dubmeup wrote:
I'm all ears...

I'm all ears...