Police are planning to cut arrests and ignore crimes as the coronavirus tightens its grip on Britain yet officers have been warning shopkeepers not to sell Easter eggs as ‘overzealous’ enforcement during the lockdown continues, it was revealed today.
Officers in several parts of the country have shocked retailers by trying to stop them from selling they consider non-essential, including chocolate gifts, even though there is no official guidance from the Government.
These include Easter eggs, which would usually be flying off the shelves with Easter Sunday less than a fortnight away, according to The Times.
Yet officers have been seen breaking up groups of more than two people on park benches, football matches in parks and one officer was dressed up in a Paw Patrol dog costume in Devon, where the force has set up road blocks. The head of the Met, Cressida Dick, said today that lockdown rules including fines and arrests should only be used as a last resort.
Shopkeepers say they have encountered police and environmental health officers entering their stores and telling them what can be sold. The Association of Convenience Stores says some of its members have encountered ‘overzealous enforcement’, and urged them to continue selling a full range of goods.
James Lowman, chief executive of the trade group, told The Times: ‘This is a misreading of the rules. In the cases where officers have challenged retailers and shoppers in this way, it’s brought confusion, distracted retailers in the busiest weeks of their lives, and increased the interactions between people at a time when the government is trying to minimise them.’
The government is yet to issue official guidelines on what can be sold by convenience stores, newsagents and off-licences. But they have been deemed to be ‘essential’ stores which can continue trading.
It came as the UK’s police forces are heading towards ‘tipping points’ in the coronavirus crisis with a ‘graduated withdrawal of service plan’ set up, including a reduction in ‘essential critical activities’ including investigating all crimes. Staff sickness is the driving force behind the plan, with up to one in six officers now off work due to illness or self-isolation.
Former Labour Leader Neil Kinnock and his wife, receiving food and a cake at a distance from their son Stephen – but South Wales Police shaming them
South West Police felt the need to warn Stephen that wishing his dad happy birthday did not count as essential travel but Kinnock replied that he was also delivering necessary supplies
In Derby, police gatecrashed a party and found 25 adults and children enjoying a large buffet and singing karaoke
The police are seen breaking up a football game taking place on Roath Rec in Cardiff
A police officer dressing up as a dog whilst enforcing the draconian lockdown measures
The Times has seen documents that show that officers will be moved to only answering 999 calls and investigating serious crime if forces reach ‘black status’ – only imposed at a time of national crisis.
A senior source said: ‘If you get to black, the force basically can’t function. You will either have to call in the army or request aid from other police forces. It’s edge-of-the-cliff stuff. I fear we will reach black in certain parts of this country, which is unprecedented.
‘It is possible arrests won’t be made. A suspect’s journey through the custody suite involves 12 different people. If a police force is on its knees they won’t be able to make those arrests.’
The head of Britain’s largest police force has told officers that new powers to enforce coronavirus lockdown rules should only be used as a last resort.
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick said her approach is to ‘help educate and encourage’ the public to comply with the tightest restrictions seen in peacetime in the UK.
Her comments came after a number of forces were accused of being overzealous in their approach to the new rules – such as South Wales Police hitting out at MP Stephen Kinnock for visiting his father, former Labour leader Neil Kinnock, on his birthday.
And officers in Warrington summonsed six people for various offences, including someone who went out for a drive because they were bored, and multiple people from the same house going out to buy non-essential items.
Police have also been patrolling the country looking to break up picnics and parties with threats of arrest or fines of up to £60 for those are breaching social distancing guidelines.
But rather than using their draconian powers to drag suspected lockdown louts to the cells, many forces have instead preferred to shame the culprits online in the hope of preventing further breaches.
Dame Cressida told LBC: ‘We are all getting used to the new restrictions and I’ve been very clear that in the first instance I want my officers to be engaging with people, talking to people, encouraging them to comply.
‘Explaining, of course, if they don’t understand – already we have had examples of people who simply hadn’t quite heard all the messages – and, only as a very last resort with the current restrictions, using firm direction or even enforcement.’
She said her officers have ‘gently’ cleared gatherings of people when discovered and are not routinely stopping drivers.
‘We’re not doing what you might call road blocks or anything like that,’ she said. ‘Yes, we stop motorists sometimes, we have a conversation with them.
‘They might have a light out, we might talk to them, we might ask them about their journey. Our approach is one entirely trying to help educate and encourage people.
‘I think we’re all trying to get used to this. My approach in my service is one entirely of trying to encourage people, to engage with people, to have conversations with people.’
When former Labour leader Neil Kinnock turned 78 on Saturday, his son Stephen, Labour MP for Aberavon, Wales, took to social media to share a heart-warming snap of their birthday meeting – sitting around six feet from his parents.
But his Twitter post was picked up by South Wales Police – who said the meeting was in breach of government guidelines.
A spokesman said: ‘We know celebrating your dad’s birthday is a lovely thing to do, however this is not essential travel.’
And as the UK’s death toll rose by another 209 to reach 1,288 yesterday, it also emerged:
- Consultant Amged El-Hawrani became the first front-line NHS worker to die from the virus;
- Deputy chief medical officer Jenny Harries said it was likely to be three to six months before the lockdown was lifted;
- Boris Johnson continued to chair meetings from isolation in Downing Street;
- Rail journeys were down by 85 per cent and bus trips fell by three quarters;
- Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab prepared to unveil a deal with commercial airlines to repatriate tens of thousands of stranded British citizens;
- Rules were relaxed for two years to allow women to self-administer abortion pills at home rather than visiting a clinic;
- Michael Gove took a swipe at China, saying its failure to be open about the virus had hindered the world’s response;
- The number volunteering to help the NHS rose beyond the target 750,000;
Neil’s son, Steven keeping a safe distance as he delivered supplies and wished his father Happy Birthday. After posting this image on social media he was contacted by police
Pictured: Former labour leader Neil Kinnock is visited by his son Stephen Kinnock and his wife Helle Thorning-Schmidt on his 78th birthday
Mr Kinnock responded by claiming the travel was in fact essential as he was delivering ‘necessary supplies’ to his father and mother, former MEP Baroness Kinnock.
Despite warnings, many Britons continued to flout guidelines yesterday and were criticised by police.
In Derby, police gatecrashed a party and found 25 adults and children enjoying a large buffet and singing karaoke.
Officers were ‘absolutely shocked’ by the enormous buffet and sound system when they entered the property in Dover Street, Normanton, at 10pm on Saturday.
Despite the scene, however, officers only gave those at the party ‘strong words of advice’ before dispersing the gathering.
‘It is clear people are still having complete disregard for the Government advice and rules,’ a statement to Twitter added.
Britons taking the law into their own hands to enforce coronavirus lockdown measures are at risk of committing ‘hate crimes’, a police chief warned yesterday.
The comments came amid a spree of vigilante reprisals on people breaking the country’s social distancing guidelines over the weekend by visiting beauty spots or town centres.
A businessman who was self-isolating at his second home in Devon was targeted by locals who daubed ‘go home’ on his car.
Tony Willis also found a leaflet on his doorstep in picturesque Bigbury-on-Sea saying: ‘Second home owners… stop being selfish.’
And signs with the slogan, ‘If you do not live here, go home’ were in the village’s car park.
But Devon and Cornwall Chief Constable Shaun Sawyer called for an end to this ‘unacceptable’ behaviour.
Mr Willis said he arrived in Devon before the lockdown to be near an elderly relative and decided not to travel home for fear of breaching non-essential travel guidance.
Speaking to the BBC, Mr Willis – who has owned the second property for ten years –added: ‘This is harassment and in any other context would be considered a hate crime.’ Describing the behaviour towards Mr Willis as ‘shocking, horrible and unacceptable’, Mr Sawyer said he had witnessed ‘horrible incidents of hate crime’.
He said: ‘This is a family who are probably just as frightened and concerned as everyone else. If they are already here we should welcome them and make them feel part of our community.’
Amid the country’s limitations on socialising, neighbours are being encouraged to report incidents to the police.
And forces in Humberside, West Midlands, Greater Manchester, and Avon and Somerset have created hotlines and online portals where tip-offs can be reported. But some locals have been criticised for deciding to take more direct action.
In Wales, furious residents trapped a Range Rover driver on a country road when it emerged he had travelled 115 miles from Sheffield to Snowdonia.
Locals Aled Wyn Williams and his friend Oswyn Roberts confronted the man on Saturday morning when they realised he was not from the area.
In footage recorded on a mobile phone, Mr Williams can be heard asking the driver: ‘What the hell are you doing here? Haven’t you got a television or radio?’
Police attended and said ‘suitable words of advice’ were given.
Farmers also joined the backlash by closing hundreds of footpaths running through their land. Despite having no authority to stop walkers using the paths, farmers are concerned that older workers are at risk so path closures are necessary.
Four people were reported to the police in Cumbria over the weekend for disregarding lockdown advice. One of these people – a 24-year-old man from Whitehaven – was ‘repeatedly’ seen in the town centre ‘with no reason’. He was returned to his home by officers.
But well-meaning locals in Liverpool were left red-faced on Saturday when they called police to investigate claims a comedy gig was in full flow – only for officers to discover it was a rerun being broadcast online.
Officers were ‘absolutely shocked’ by the enormous buffet and sound system when they entered the property in Dover Street, Normanton, at 10pm on Saturday
North West Motorway Police said a driver had been caught making a 224-mile round trip from Coventry to Salford, Greater Manchester, to buy £15 windows on eBay (Pictured: The M6)
The driver’s wife was travelling in the boot of the car when they were pulled over by a motorway patrol on the M6 in Cheshire, according to a tweet by the North West Motorway Police Twitter feed
Twitter users, however, were more baffled by the eclectic 1970s-style buffet the alleged lockdown rule-breakers were enjoying.
Derbyshire Police also broke up a picnic and shisha party where eight people were found chomping away on kebabs at Snake Pass in the Peak District on Thursday.
The individuals had travelled hundreds of miles from Manchester, Sheffield and Ipswich to meet, police said – who gave them a stern warning and sent them home.
North West Motorway Police added a driver had been caught making a 224-mile round trip from Coventry to Salford, Greater Manchester, to buy £15 windows on eBay.
But after picking up his purchase, the driver’s wife could not fit in the vehicle for the return journey to the West Midlands.
She was travelling in the boot of the car when they were pulled over by a motorway patrol on the M6 in Cheshire, according to a tweet by the North West Motorway Police Twitter feed.
And a tourist was stopped in Devon after driving his motor home from Birmingham.
An officer said: ‘Birmingham to North Devon is not in the spirit of fighting the virus.’
Thugs also took up valuable police time by purposely coughing on officers and emergency workers while claiming to have contracted the virus.
On Saturday Paul Leivers, 48, from Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, was jailed for 12 months after spitting at police custody officers after saying he was infected.
It comes as police faced accusations of ‘overzealousness’ from ex-MPs, lawyers and human rights groups.
Shoppers in Teesside head to their cars after shopping at The Range and B&M on Sunday
Another shopper stocks up on ’emergency’ supplies of plastic drawers and filing trays at the store in Stockton-On-Tees
One man appeared to have bought a canvas print of a reptile as another pushed a trolley containing a metal bin
A man in a face mask and a hi-vis jacket carries a thin cardboard box out of a shop in Teesside
Officers have been accused of officious muscle-flexing since the Coronavirus Act received Royal Assent last week.
This week, Derbyshire Police poured black dye into a crystal blue lagoon in the Peak District to deter people from making ‘non-essential trips’.
In a Facebook post, Buxton safer neighbourhood policing team said: ‘No doubt this is due to the picturesque location and the lovely weather (for once) in Buxton.
‘However, the location is dangerous and this type of gathering is in contravention of the current instruction of the UK Government.
‘With this in mind, we have attended the location this morning and used water dye to make the water look less appealing.’
Derbyshire Police dyeing the ‘blue lagoon’ in Harpur Hill, Buxton black, as gatherings there are ‘dangerous’ and are ‘in contravention of the current instruction of the UK Government’
The force says that people should not be heading to the Peak District to admire the sunset while Britain is in lockdown
Derbyshire Police sent up their drone and filmed people on ‘not essential’ trips to the Peak District including people posing for an ‘Instagram snap’
Alex John Desmond, who lives nearby, wrote on Facebook: ‘This is a joke, the way this force is acting is not representative of policing by consent which is the way the UK is meant to be governed. You should be ashamed of yourselves.
‘You have taken something beautiful and damaged it.’
He added that the force was promoting a culture of ‘shaming’ individuals, claiming that he was shouted down on his first trip out since lockdown began.
Officers have been given powers to arrest people who are out of their homes on ‘non-essential’ journeys, with a three-strike fine policy which starts at £60 for a first offence, rises to £120 for the second and reaches £1,000.
Furious Welsh locals block Range Rover driver who had driven 115 miles from Sheffield to Snowdonia despite coronavirus lockdown
By Raven Saunt for MailOnline
A group of furious locals blocked a Range Rover driver after he travelled 115 miles from Sheffield to Snowdonia despite the coronavirus lockdown.
The man was spotted at around 10am on Saturday as he drove down country lanes near Bala in Gwynedd, Wales.
Aled Wyn Williams recorded the confrontation before police were eventually called to the scene.
Mr Williams stopped the vehicle, along with his friend Oswyn Roberts, after realising that the driver was not from the area.
A group of furious locals blocked a Range Rover driver after he travelled 115 miles from Sheffield to Snowdonia despite the coronavirus lockdown
The man was spotted at around 10am on Saturday as he drove down country lanes near Bala in Gwynedd, Wales
He said he was angered by the lack of respect shown by the visitor when the pair stopped him on the road.
Mr Williams added: ‘[The driver] was heading away from Bala and the main road.
‘I drove along the road and stopped him. My friend Oswyn Roberts came along behind, blocking him in.
‘He told me he called the police because he felt threatened.
‘I told him all we were doing was encouraging him to go home. If he hadn’t called the police, I would have done.’
A sign erected near Pembrokeshire reads ‘non locals please go home #covid-19’
Signs have been erected across the country urging people to stay home and not travel, such as this one in Bala, north Wales
In the footage, a queue of vehicles can be seen in a standoff along a single-lane track surrounded by fields.
Sheep can be heard in the background as Mr Williams walks towards the driver’s side of the black Range Rover, which has a trailer in tow.
He points the camera at the man behind the wheel who also has a phone in his hand to take pictures.
Mr Williams then gestures down the road and says: ‘Your friends have just arrived…
‘What the hell are you doing here anyway? What the hell are you doing here?
‘Haven’t you got a television or radio?’
The clip cuts to another angle of the confrontation recorded by an onlooker.
Mr Williams throws his arms into the air before storming back towards his vehicle, which is where the video ends.
The locals continued to block the route until police arrived at the scene.
A spokesperson for North Wales Police said: ‘Police were called at 10.12am to a report of a man being blocked on a country lane in Bala.
‘Officers attended and suitable words of advice were given.’
The driver of the Range Rover, who had driven 115 miles from Sheffield in an attempt to visit Snowdonia, was eventually asked to return home.
Britons taking the law into their own hands to enforce coronavirus lockdown measures are at risk of committing ‘hate crimes’, a police chief warned yesterday.
A businessman who was self-isolating at his second home in Devon was targeted by locals who daubed ‘go home’ on his car.
Tony Willis also found a leaflet on his doorstep in picturesque Bigbury-on-Sea saying: ‘Second home owners… stop being selfish.’
And signs with the slogan, ‘If you do not live here, go home’ were in the village’s car park.