Politixia
She said: “In recent years, we’ve seen an unacceptable rise in police partisanship and the police straying into politically-contested areas,” claiming officers taking the knee at Black Lives Matter protests had an “insidious effect on public confidence”.
Mrs Braverman also hit out at forces declaring themselves as “institutionally racist”, saying: “When I see police chiefs at some forces declaring that they are institutionally racist, I think they should be more concerned about tackling knife crime, catching burglars and stopping anti-social behaviour. It’s not a helpful term and doesn’t do anything for the public who the police are there to serve.”
Mr Fotheringham, who will address the PSA conference in Stratford-upon-Avon on Tuesday, is expected to warn that her comments are doing little to rebuild trust and confidence in policing, especially among marginalised communities where the relationship is most challenging.
He will tell his colleagues: “The language being used here matters. When the Government uses language in this way to position police as political rather than inclusive, are we opening the doors to a rhetoric of discrimination against those most vulnerable in our communities?”
Sir Mark Rowley, the Met Commissioner, recently said policing should avoid aligning itself with political causes because it prevented officers from operating without fear or favour.
He told the Telegraph: “Engaging with communities to understand what worries them is not woke. Starting to align yourself to causes is not something policing should be doing. It is a tricky subject, but for me I’m fairly narrow-minded on this. There are very few causes policing should be attached to.”
Ms Braverman is not attending this year’s conference, although a senior Cabinet minister is expected to make a speech.
