It is hard to remember a time of greater political, social and cultural consternation. Take the past weekend, and its dizzying kaleidoscope of imagery. You had elements of the far-left marching to endorse a theocracy that denies basic human rights. There were far-right supporters roaming the streets of London chanting in support of a Jewish state. There were thousands upon thousands of peace-loving British citizens taking part in what the erstwhile Home Secretary called a “hate march”. And meanwhile the police were engaged in a running battle to protect the Cenotaph from an incursion of avowed English patriots.
It is difficult to make sense of what’s going on in Britain at the moment, and James Cleverly, today’s Home Secretary and a man of more measured tones than his predecessor, will need wisdom, patience, impeccable judgement and the right words to navigate a path through this incoherent, dangerous mess. His first step, before he even looks in his new in-tray, should be a comfort call to Sir Mark Rowley, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner.
Already discomfited by Suella Braverman’s blundering populism, the Met was put in an impossible position on Saturday, and Mr Cleverly needs unequivocally to appreciate that. Under pressure from No 10 to arrest any marcher wielding a placard that could be considered offensive, or shouting something that was deemed to be antisemitic, the police had to exercise a fine judgement call in the midst of a seething, excitable, highly emotionally-charged assembly of people.
For instance, is “From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free” now regarded as hate speech, and therefore an arrestable offence? The guidance on this is unclear, and so it is left to a police constable on the front line to weigh up whether to move in and make an arrest.
Some who shout this slogan undoubtedly want to eradicate the Jewish state, which could be prosecuted as a racially aggravated action under Section 5 of the Public Order Act. However, others, maybe even the majority of the gathering, believe that, in joining in with this rallying cry, they are doing nothing more than expressing a wish that Palestinians should have the same freedoms as we do. And a police officer in the throng has to decide instantly who gets their collar felt.
“Context is crucial,” said Ms Braverman, eschewing the incendiary rhetoric that got her sacked. “Behaviours that are legitimate in some circumstances, for example the waving of a Palestinian flag, may not be legitimate such as when intended to glorify acts of terrorism.”
But how do you instantly recognise an individual’s intent among a crowd of protesters? And there is no point in the police making hundreds of arrests, just to please a Prime Minister who sounds off about zero-tolerance, if none is actually charged.
But policing is a practical not theoretical exercise, and on Saturday officers were faced with a more significant and urgent problem than deciding on the potency of particular language. Tommy Robinson and his extreme right-wing chums also took to the streets of London, ostensibly, they said, to defend the Cenotaph from peace marchers.
They were called, in official communiqués, “counter-protesters”, but that dignifies their purpose. They had no cause other than to cause trouble, and these angry, hate-filled men, some armed with knives and bottles, chanting “we want our country back”, or singing, in the manner of football crowds, “Is-raaael”, are the people I’d most like to be protected from.
It was entirely correct that officers were redeployed from the march to quell the serious public order threat they posed. “You’re not English any more,” was their response to the ranks of police, and an overwhelming majority of the arrests made on Saturday were of these right-wing extremists.
Yet, even today, Rishi Sunak is demanding more action, and more arrests, from the police, who in turn have asked for more direction and specific guidance on what, in current circumstances, constitutes an offence. These are seriously complex and perilous times in the life of our nation, and a thin blue line separates us from the disintegration into complete disorder. We should recognise that more gratefully.
