Philip Davies: Police deserve better protection in law

IT has been a very difficult few weeks and months for the reputation of the police, but we should never lose sight of the essential job they do in keeping us safe and upholding the rule of law on a daily basis.

Having spent something like 60 days out with all aspects of West Yorkshire Police since I was elected to Parliament in 2005, I have the greatest respect for officers and the personal sacrifices they make on a daily basis to keep us all safe.

One of the most serious consequences of being a police officer is the threat of personal injury or actual injury – and occasionally worse – in the line of duty.

Only the other day just one of those cases was before Bradford Crown Court. Sergeant Andrew Heald had been arresting a criminal who had an armful of previous convictions (and who was also out on licence at the time) when he had acid thrown in his face. Unsurprisingly, he feared he had been blinded or disfigured. I cannot imagine how frightening that would have been – and this is someone doing their job of protecting the public.

The sentence handed down to the low life who threw the acid in his face was just 20 months for that attack and a further 10 months for the offence for which Sergeant Heald was actually trying to arrest him.

I want to be clear that this derisory sentence was not the fault of the judge as I have looked carefully at the sentencing guidelines. It is obvious that the judge had acted to the best of his ability given the constraints that the guidelines placed on him.

However, this means that, subject to the licence situation, this thug – who should not have been out of prison in the first place in my opinion as he should have served the full sentence handed down by the court previously – will serve just 10 months in prison for this vicious attack.

Yet, this is just the tip of the iceberg. The sentencing guidelines relating to assaulting a police officer were amended a few years ago. At the time I was concerned to be told that, as an example, someone committing an assault on a police officer which involved a punch to the stomach that winded the officer, where there was an attempt to evade arrest and where that individual had previous convictions, could – in theory – only be punished with a fine. I was concerned about that then and I am still concerned about that now.

I have asked Parliamentary questions and have been shocked to find out that only one in seven criminals convicted of an assault on a constable in the execution of their duty received a prison sentence at all.

For example, in the latest year of the figures, there were 7,829 assaults on police officers yet only 1,002 of the offenders were actually sent to prison. I think that this is totally unacceptable.

Other Parliamentary questions also revealed that someone with an astonishing 36 previous convictions for assaulting a police officer managed to avoid being sent to prison for a further assault – on a police officer!

This kind of soft, lily-livered approach to sentencing is not on. This is why I called for a debate in Parliament to ensure that the sentences for crimes against the police and other public servants – who we should never forget also face violence carrying out their essential public duties – are specifically increased to reflect that fact.

There should be a clear additional sentence for anyone who attacks our police and, generally, the sentences need to be much more severe. The
police put their lives at risk to protect us and I think the law should better protect them.

Yorkshire needs no reminding of the sacrifices made by the police in the line of duty. Wpc Sharon Beshenivsky was shot dead in Bradford answering a call with her colleague Teresa Milburn who was injured. Previously Pc Ian Broadhurst was shot dead in Leeds on Boxing Day, 2003, while responding to a traffic incident.

These terrible attacks should always act as reminder of the bravery of our police and the price they sometimes pay to protect us. It is only right that the Government and Parliament totally supports them in return. Toughening up sentencing on those who attack the police as they are doing their duty would be a very good start.

Philip Davies is the Conservative MP for Shipley.