Civil Liberties solicitor and Director at Broudie Jackson Canter, Chris Topping comments on the Home Secretary’s announcements from 16th of May 2022.
Section 60 Stop and Search powers
The new powers given to the Police go alongside the Home Secretary’s increasingly draconian legislation – the restriction on protester’s rights in the Police and Courts Act is already in force and the extension of search powers under Section 60 will be a further erosion of civil liberties.”
Section 60 is a power which allows police to stop and search people without reasonable grounds in an area when serious violence is expected. Police do not need to be in uniform to stop and question someone, but they must show you their warrant card.
Read more about wrongful arrest and rules that police must follow.
Previously, Section 60 had limitations about how long they could be in place for, who was able to authorise them, and why they were put in place.
Since the changes from last week, a Section 60 can be in force for 24 hours and can be extended to 48 hours. The rank of the officer who can authorise the stop and search has been lowered and the officers in question only need to anticipate that serious violence “may” occur rather than “will” occur.
Crucially, they no longer need to publicly communicate to communities in advance.
Special Constables permitted to use tasers
The use of Tasers by full time and trained officers remains controversial many years after they were introduced. Providing them to Special Constables is a sure-fire way to engender more public concern about a tool which can be lethal if used wrongly.”
The Inquest team at Broudie Jackson Canter has supported families of people who died as a result of the use of tasers, emphasising the danger of these electrical weapons.
Reflecting on the statement from the Home Office, Chris Topping reflects:
These seem to be powers that the police have not asked for and, therefore, there seems to be a clear political agenda from this government to curtail rights and to create a less free and tolerant society.”
Despite these changes, you still have a right to sue the police if you have experience police misconduct.