Gavin Mortimer Gavin Mortimer

British police must learn from France in dealing with Extinction Rebellion

I’ve always been a fan of the French police, in part because when I lived in the south of the country I played rugby in a team that contained a couple of coppers who told me stories of what they had to deal with on a daily basis. But I’m also a little partial to them because they do what it says on the tin: they police

I recall a summer’s evening in Montpellier a few years ago when two young drunks were causing a disturbance for diners and drinkers in a crowded square. The police arrived and manhandled the louts into their squad car, one of whom made the mistake of resisting arrest. As he was manoeuvred into the back seat the man’s head met the door frame. An accident? Mais oui, and one that drew a raucous cheer from diners.

The French police don’t mess about. Very occasionally, they may be a little heavy-handed but isn’t that better than half-hearted, which is what some British police appear to have become? There are still, of course, plenty within Britain’s rank and file who do a terrific job. And there are also some splendid specialist officers, as we saw earlier this month in the response to the Islamist attack in Streatham. But the average bobby is in danger of becoming something of a joke.

I assumed things couldn’t get any worse after those photographs last year of police dancing and skateboarding with protestors during the Extinction Rebellion protest that brought chaos to London. But what has unfolded this week in Cambridge – where climate change activists dug up Trinity College’s ancient lawn – has proved me wrong. Are the police now the paramilitary wing of the Guardian?

The difference between French police and their British counterparts is more than just ideological.

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Gavin Mortimer
Written by
Gavin Mortimer

Gavin Mortimer is a British author who lives in Burgundy after many years in Paris. He writes about French politics, terrorism and sport.

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