Police Arms and Weaponry

What are police arms and weapons?

The British police are famed across the world for being 'unarmed' - but this is a misnomer. Although police officers are not equipped with firearms as a matter of course, they are routinely issued with other weapons and have access to a wide range of guns and other lethal and non-lethal equipment.

The police in the UK are organised locally into a number of largely county-based forces, each of which has its own detailed arrangements. However, all police officers are equipped with batons and handcuffs.

Background

The nearest a mainland British police force ever came to being routinely armed was in 1884 in London, following the murder of two officers. The Metropolitan Police Commissioner of the day gave officers permission to carry revolvers on night patrols. This persisted until 1936 when guns were required to be kept in a locked cupboard at police stations.

Police have carried the 'truncheon' since their modern formation under legislation introduced in 1829 by Sir Robert Peel. This short wooden club remained in service, relatively unchanged until the 1990s, when police weaponry began to change dramatically.

In 1992 extensive scientific testing was carried out on straight baton alternatives to the truncheon including measuring injury potential. In-force trials were undertaken and the Home Secretary backed recommendations that the expandable side-handled baton (ESHB) be allowed to replace the truncheon.

Another change introduced in the 1990s was the adoption of rigid-link handcuffs, which in 1991 replaced the old chain-linked handcuffs.

In August 1996 the chief constables were given permission to introduce CS spray into their forces. This followed trials earlier in the year which had identified no significant problems: it was concluded that the spray was a safer option, both for the public and for the police, than the use of batons.

Parts of London are specifically patrolled by Armed Response Vehicles, whose crew of three are armed with Glock 17 self-loading pistols and Heckler and Koch MP5 carbines.

In spite of this trend towards greater arming of the police, the use of firearms remains regulated and restricted to certain specialised police units.

The Association of Chief Police Officers have provided 'strategic advice and guidance on all matters relating to the deployment of armed officers' in manual form since 1983 and this has been updated and issued twice yearly since.

This advises that firearms should be used only when absolutely necessary after conventional methods have failed; warnings must be given of intention to fire, and the target's right to life should be considered.

All the forces in the UK are also issued with the 'Firearms Guidance to Police' manual, a lengthy document detailing the legal regulation of firearms in the UK and covers the vast range of domestic legislation and international guidance on firearms use. Codes of practice are also issued by the Home Office providing comprehensive guidance on the policy and use of firearms and less lethal weapons by police.

Controversies

The police have been increasingly armed to respond to mounting levels of violent crime and the on-going terrorist threat.

Throughout the 1990s, the reform of police equipment was objected to in some quarters as a form of militarisation and Americanisation of an organisation that historically had had no need for lethal weapons. Opponents also argued that arming the police more heavily would harm carefully built community relations.

On the other hand, the 1980s and 1990s saw rising violent crime, and the increased use of firearms by criminals. The 1993 killing of PC Pat Dunne in Clapham, south London, was a particular watershed.

Nonetheless, the public and the police themselves remain largely opposed to the routine carrying of firearms. A 2003 Police Federation survey found 80 per cent of officers opposed, a similar figure to that found in the Federation's previous survey in 1995. However, 80 per cent of officers wanted more officers trained to use firearms.

Any decision by the police to use firearms raises questions of propriety and proportionality. Some incidents have been particularly controversial, such as the shooting of a man in Brixton in 2001. After firing six rounds into the target, the police discovered that the lethal firearm they thought the man was carrying was actually a cigarette lighter shaped as a gun. This incident followed the shooting of Harry Stanley, shot dead by armed police in East London in 1999 as he was returning home from the pub carrying a coffee table leg in a plastic bag.

And in July 2005, Jean Charles de Menezes was shot dead at Stockwell Tube Station by police who had mistaken him for a terrorist. The Crown Prosecution Service decided there was insufficient evidence to bring prosecutions against any individual officers, but implemented proceedings in 2007 against the office of the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis for failing to protect the health, safety and welfare of Mr de Menezes. The Metropolitan Police Service was fined £175,000 with £385,000 costs.

These incidents have undermined public confidence in the ability of the police to assess what is a proportionate response to individual threats, and have fuelled calls for the police to use only non-lethal weapons in all operations.

A 1998 Police Complaints Authority report warned that US-style baton training regimes and a lack of refresher training was resulting in an excessive number of injuries, and a 2000 report expressed concern about a lack of research into the health effects of CS gas, following a number of deaths related to incidents involving its use.

Consequently the Home Office regularly carries out assessments on - and introduces when possible - equipment that is less lethal than conventional firearms.

In 2004 Taser stun guns were made available to authorised firearms officers in England and Wales and a twelve month trial began in September 2007 in ten police forces to decide whether Tasers should be issued to specially trained police units who are not firearms officers. Following the success of the trial it was decided to allow Chief Officers of all forces in England and Wales to extend Taser use to specially trained units with effect from 1st December 2008.

In June 2005 the attenuating energy projectile (AEP) was introduced into operational service as the successor to the L21A1 baton round. It is said to be significantly safer, whilst retaining overall effectiveness.

And research continues into the development of the discriminating irritant projectile (DIP). The objective for the DIP is to deliver a discrete, localized cloud or burst of sensory irritant in the immediate proximity of an individual aggressor. It is not intended to cause serious or life threatening injury.

In the Summer of 2010 the Government carried out a review into the on-going programme of work to improve the police and military response to a possible terrorist attack, which resulted in the programme being "significantly expanded and accelerated":

All firearms officers in England and Wales now have access to higher calibre weaponry, enhanced tactics and training.
There is permanent additional police firearms capacity in major cities and improved procedures to provide rapid back-up from neighbouring areas.
Specialist Olympic-related training for police firearms officers has been brought forward.
Unarmed police officers in England and Wales are now trained to identify and respond to the initial stages of a possible terrorist attack involving firearms.
This work is now being taken forward by the Cabinet Office through the National Resilience Programme.

During the riots in August 2011, Prime Minister David Cameron stated that police would be allowed to use rubber bullets – known as baton rounds - and also that the water cannon stationed in Northern Ireland was available to be deployed within 24 hours notice. However, both tactics were widely opposed, the former because rubber bullets have been reported to have killed several demonstrators in the past, and the latter because it would be not be effective in that particular situation.
 

Statistics

The latest figures on police use of firearms in England and Wales 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2010 show that:

The number of police operations in which firearms were authorised was 18,556—a decrease of 1,395 (7%) on the previous year.
The number of authorised firearms officers (AFO’s) was 6,979—an increase of 111 (1.6%) officers overall on the previous year.
The number of operations involving armed response vehicles was 14,089—a decrease of 2,475 (15%) on the previous year.
The police discharged a conventional firearm in six incidents (up from five incidents in 2008-09).

Source: Home Office minister Nick Herbert – June 2011
 

Quotes

"In several areas we will have to develop new capabilities in response to the technology and techniques that the terrorists are now deploying against us.
"So we will invest further in police firearms capability to deal with the threat of a Mumbai style attack in this country. That does not mean that we will have police with machine guns on every street corner. It means that if an attack of this sort should take place we will be better equipped to save the lives of those affected by it."

Home Secretary Theresa May, from 'Our response to the terrorist threat' speech to RUSI - November 2010

"We said that we would do everything necessary to bring the disorder to an end, and we meant it. We made clear to the police that there was nothing to stop them using baton rounds if they judged it necessary. We put the water cannon stationed in Northern Ireland on standby to be deployed within 24 hours. The police made it clear to me that they did not want to use them. And, as things stand, what is working is officers on the streets, robust policing and the help and support of local communities – which we would jeopardise if we rushed to use things like rubber bullets."

Home Secretary, Theresa May, in a speech given to the House of Commons on the riots – August 2011