Scotland Yard has admitted to making mistakes in its handling of the Gaza protests, acknowledging that it should have responded more promptly to "jihad" chants.
The Metropolitan Police faced a significant amount of pressure over the way it has dealt with the pro-Palestine demonstrations, which drew hundreds of thousands to the capital.
Speaking to Policy Exchange before the publication of a report by the think tank on the impact of the protests, Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist said: “We know we didn’t get everything right” and noted that quicker arrests could have been made.
Criticism had been particularly strong over the delay in arresting individuals who were chanting inflammatory slogans.
Twist said: “When we review the policing of protests over the last eight months, we recognise our imperfections – especially in the early stages in October.
“There were instances where we did not expedite arrests, such as the case involving the man chanting for jihad. This decision was influenced by prompt legal advice from both lawyers and the Crown Prosecution Service.
“We are now more focused on identifying reasonable grounds for arrest and acting accordingly. In such circumstances, arrests would very likely be made more promptly.”
However, Twist dismissed the accusation of "two-tier or differential policing", and countered that officers had deployed a number of approaches based on threat, harm and risk levels.
Since last October, groups such as Just Stop Oil, Extinction Rebellion and the Palestine Solidarity Campaign have regularly organised protests and counter-protests. The nationwide riots that followed killing of three young girls in Southport in July added to the burden on the force.
The Policy Exchange report said over 400 arrests had been made at protests since October 2023 for offences including terrorism, violence, antisemitic chanting and MP intimidation.
The notion of “peaceful” protests was disputed by the think tank, which argued that authorities have frequently and wrongly prioritised the rights of disruptive protesters over those of the general public.
From October to June, policing related to Palestine-related protests in London cost £42.9 million.
Identifying gaps in current legislation, the report noted that organisers are required to give only six days’ notice to the police before staging a march.
Final plans are often disclosed to the public just a day before or on the day of the event, making it “simply unreasonable” for those not participating in the march “continually adapt”.
The report urged the government to implement broader powers to ban protests and recommended the establishment of a protest commission in London, appointed by the home secretary. It also advised the Metropolitan Police to enforce "more stringent" conditions on protest marches.
Lord Hogan-Howe, the former Met commissioner, emphasised the need for the government to “rebalance the legal regime in favour of ordinary members of the public going about their daily lives.”
The Metropolitan Police has been contacted for comment.
