The cost implications of policing public order events 2010/11

Report: 8
Date: 21 July 2011
By: Director of Resources on behalf of the Commissioner

Summary

This report sets out the annual policing costs associated with major public order events between 1 April 2010 and 31 March 2011 at a total cost of £34.8m. It provides Members with the current position on the Home Office review of the Guidance on Football Related Legislation particularly around charging for police deployments.

A. Recommendations

That members

1. Note the report.
2. Note the current developments within the Home Office in respect of charging for the police deployments at football matches.

B. Supporting information

Background

1. The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) is regularly required to police public events. A report detailing the cost implications of policing these type of events has been provided to the Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA) since June 2001. The purpose of this report is to provide an update on the cost of policing such events where 300 or more police officer shifts were dedicated to an event for the period 1 April 2010 to 31 March 2011. A list of the events and associated costs are included in Appendix 1.

Notable Public Order Events during 2010/11

2. The largest events in terms of deployment during the reporting period included:

• Student related protests - estimated total policing cost of £7.5m.
• Embassy Patrols in response to protests outside embassies in London - estimated total policing cost of £6.5m.
• Notting Hill Carnival - estimated total policing cost of £6.3m.
• Trades Union Congress Demonstration - estimated total policing cost of £2.1m.
• Papal Visit - estimated total policing cost of £1.9m.

3. The MPS believes the right to protest is a fundamental part of a democratic society and will facilitate peaceful protest. At the same time strongly held views can never legitimise violence, as a democratic society expects people to behave lawfully. Hence the MPS will strive to ensure perpetrators of violence will be brought to justice, as we have a responsibility to enforce laws that protect private property. To police protests successfully and continue to improve public confidence the MPS will:

• Engage with protest organisers and communities
• Intervene quickly to prevent criminal behaviour
• Employ sure-footed tactics on the ground
• Track down those responsible for violence.

4. The MPS will provide enough police officers to respond to any public order challenges – but that will have both a cost implication and an impact on local, visible policing in neighbourhoods. The cumulative impact of the abstraction of officers from borough duties can, over time, significantly reduce local police resilience.

Costing Methodology

5. In policing such events, resource requirements are assessed and requested by Public Order Branch and deployed through preparation of an Operational Policing Order. Typically, this document will set out the numbers of officers and support personnel to be deployed and will provide detailed operational instructions to govern their deployment. The operational policing order forms the basis of public order costs reported to this Committee.

6. The costing information is prepared using a standard costing methodology so that input factors, for example, hours worked by police officers assigned to the event, are costed at an average rate per unit of input. Actual costs incurred may differ marginally from the standard costs but based upon previous comparisons the overall effect has proved insignificant.

7. In the table (see Appendix 1), the column titled “Opportunity Costs” refers to those resources diverted from other policing activities to be deployed on Public Order duties. Members are asked to note that, with the exception of overtime and other additional costs, a large proportion of costs quoted do not represent additional costs to the MPS. Rather, the officers and other staff assigned to a given operation would be otherwise assigned to other policing duties or operations. “Additional Staff Costs” relate to overtime and allowances and “Additional Other Costs” refer to all other support costs and other expenditure (e.g. Transport, Air Support, Catering, the provision of barriers and equipment).

(i) Regular annual events

8. It is difficult to compare the cost of policing between years because of the varied number and type of events that occur. There are several events that occur annually and the following events have traditionally been included in the annual Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA) reports each year as follows:

• Notting Hill Carnival
• New Years Eve celebrations,
• London Marathon,
• Mayday Demonstrations,
• Trooping the Colour (the Queen’s Birthday Parade),
• Festival of Remembrance,
• Remembrance Sunday and
• State Opening of Parliament.

Appendix 2 compares costs and the number of officers deployed between 2009/10 and 2010/11 in relation to the regular events listed above. Deployment levels are based upon the number of people expected to attend the event, historical information, the latest available intelligence and the potential risk of disorder. This can vary significantly from one year to the next.

Notting Hill Carnival

9. The public order event that routinely incurs a high cost is the annual Notting Hill Carnival. The event requires the deployment of a large number of officers to work with London Notting Hill Carnival Limited (the event organiser) to ensure the safety of the public and keep order as well as using a large amount of technical equipment and barriers/cones etc. Communication related costs are also a factor - additional costs were incurred ensuring optimum functionality of the Airwave system during the Carnival. As the event is held over a Bank Holiday weekend, overtime payments are made at an enhanced rate, which increases the cost to the MPS.

10. The total estimated cost of policing the 2010 event was £6.3m. £3.5m of the estimate is in relation to opportunity costs, £2.8m is additional costs of which £1.6m is overtime and £1.2m is other costs. The total estimated cost of policing the 2009 event was £6.6m. The variance between 2009 and 2010 is mainly due to a reduction in overtime related costs.

New Year’s Eve - Central London celebrations

11. The relatively large number of officers deployed at this event is primarily due to the requirement to police an increased geographical area in recent years. This geographical area encompasses events such as the firework display held on and around the London Eye and along the Thames.

12. The estimated total cost of the 2010 policing operation is £1.08m. £0.87m of the estimate is in relation to opportunity costs, £0.21m is additional costs of which £0.07m is overtime and £0.14m is other costs. The total cost of the 2009 event was £1.32m. The variance between 2009 and 2010 is due to a reduction in Airwave related costs.

(ii) High profile events during 2010/11

Student Demonstrations

13. Eleven student related demonstrations were held between 10 November and 29 January 2011. Several of these appear in Appendix 1 because police deployment at the individual events exceeded the 300 officer shift ceiling.

14. As this was a series of events the estimated total cost of the whole policing operation includes the events where police deployment was less than 300 shifts. The total estimated cost for the period is £7.53m. £4.8m of the estimate is in relation to opportunity costs. £2.73m is additional costs of which £1.9m is overtime. £0.58m is other costs and £0.25m relates to mutual aid provided by other police forces.

Trades Union Congress (TUC) March for the Alternative

15. This was a large demonstration organised by the TUC to protest against Government cuts. The event was attended by several other organisations and certain elements that were intent on causing disorder. The response required a lengthy policing operation resulting in associated overtime payments.

16. The estimated total cost of the policing operation is £2.14m. £1.32m of the estimate is in relation to opportunity costs. £0.82m is additional costs of which £0.44m is overtime. £0.16m is other costs and £0.22m relates to mutual aid provided by other police forces.

Embassy Patrols

17. During 2011, as a result of civil unrest in a number of North African and Middle Eastern countries and associated demonstrations taking place outside various Embassies within London, a significant policing response has been required. Since mid February 2011 the MPS has been patrolling the relevant Embassies and deploying officers as necessary depending upon events and current intelligence (Operation Fieldgate).

18. As this report is written, the policing operation is ongoing. Costs posted as of 31 May 2011 have been applied for the purposes of reporting costs in this report. Because the Operation spans financial years it is not possible to disaggregate costs such as overtime and identify a specific cost for the 2010/11 financial year. The overtime costs posted as at 31 May 2011 relate to the period that payment was made rather than when overtime was actually worked. The estimated total cost of the policing operation between 22 February and 31 May 2011 is £6.47m. £5.65m of the estimate is in relation to opportunity costs. £0.82m is additional costs of which £0.63m is overtime. £0.19m is other costs. A further update will be provided once the operation ends.

Papal Visit

19. As part of the Papal Visit to the UK, Pope Benedict XVI visited London in September 2010. The policing operation included the vigil held in Hyde Park and the protest demonstration opposing the Papal Visit (“Protest the Pope”).

20. The estimated cost of the MPS policing operation between 16 and 19 September 2010 is £1.86m. £1.34m of the estimate is in relation to opportunity costs. £0.52m is additional costs of which £0.3m is overtime. £0.22m is other costs.

Football World Cup related police patrols

21. The FIFA World Cup took place in South Africa in 2010. The associated MPS policing operation took the form of town centre patrols throughout the MPS region during the tournament, monitoring the screening of matches in London parks and central London deployments.

22. The estimated cost of the MPS policing operation between 11 June and 11 July 2010 is £1.23m. £1.17m of the estimate is in relation to opportunity costs. £0.06m is additional costs of which £0.05m is overtime. £0.01m is other costs.

General Election Campaign

23. The MPS policing operation in relation to the general election campaign began on 12 April 2010 and ran until the 8 May 2010. The policing operation dealt with any issues in the lead-up to the election, the actual election, which took place on 6 May 2010 and continued until the 8th May to include the “count days”.

24. The estimated total cost of the policing operation is £2.22m. £1.47m of the estimate is in relation to opportunity costs. £0.75m is additional costs of which £0.73m is overtime and £0.02m is other costs.
Update on charging arrangements for policing football matches

25. There has been an ongoing dialogue at a national level in relation to the policing and charging policy adopted by police forces in respect of the policing of football matches for a number of years. Police forces are seeking a consistent, robust and legally sound approach to the charging arrangements with their respective football clubs in keeping with recent case law.

26. The discussions that have taken place nationally between ACPO and the Leagues to provide a common understanding and agreement on this issue have not been progressed. The main area of contention is in respect of the geographical extent of charging around stadia, which has become to be known as the ‘policing footprint’.

27. ACPO believe the Court of Appeal ruling from the case between Greater Manchester Police and Wigan Athletic Football Club in 2007 has provided police forces with the facility to charge for special police services for the deployment of resources within a ‘policing footprint’ that not only encompasses the stadium but also land and highways that the club has “control over” as part of the match outside of the physical confines of the Stadium (public roads, car parks etc.).

28. The Leagues disagree taking their stance as one which maintains parity with the current direction from the Home Office Circular 34/2000 (Home Office Guidance on football related legislation) which allows them to continue paying for only those policing resources deployed at football grounds on the private property of the owners of these clubs.

29. In December 2010, the Minister for Policing and Criminal Justice asked that the Circular 34/2000 be revised. The Home Office is working with colleagues from the Department of Culture, Media and Sports in progressing this action.

30. As at the date of this report, the Home Office are looking to publish revised Guidance shortly which is to provide clarity and consistency around charging for special police services at football matches particularly around the geographical extent of the policing footprint. Additionally the Home office is to undertake a wider review of police charging which is likely to involve a public consultation.

C. Other organisational and community implications

Equality and Diversity Impact

1. There are no issues which impact upon equality and diversity in respect of the historical cost information provided in this report.

Consideration of MET Forward

2. This report is purely for historical reporting purposes. The information contained in the report indicates that the MPS is recovering costs where legislation and current MPS policy permits i.e. in relation to the policing of commercial events. This adheres to the current MPA policy on cost recovery.

Financial Implications

3. The MPS resources involved in the 42 public order / ceremonial events where 300 or more officer shifts were involved (recorded in Appendix 1), amount to 87,676 police officer shifts and 3,305 police staff shifts at a total estimated cost of £34.8m. Police staff include Police Community Support Officers, communication officers, catering staff, drivers, engineers etc.

4. The largest and most costly policing operations included:

• Student related protests - estimated total policing cost of £7.5m
• Embassy Patrols in response to events overseas - estimated total policing cost of £6.5m
• Notting Hill Carnival - estimated total policing cost of £6.3m
• Trades Union Congress March for the Alternative - estimated total policing cost of £2.1m
• Papal Visit - estimated total policing cost of £1.9m.

Cost Recovery

5. Under Section 25 of the Police Act 1996, the Commissioner can agree to requests from third parties to provide special police services, subject to the payment of charges agreed by the MPA. The charges for special police services are agreed by the MPA annually as part of the annual Review of MPS Fees and Charges and are calculated to recover full costs.
6. The Policy agreed by the MPA Coordination and Policing Committee on the 19 July 2004 defined the type of events that the MPS would normally be required to police under four clear categories:

• Commercial Events - events where there is financial gain or profit to the organiser or company without specific community benefit, usually, but not exclusively, through members of the public having to pay an entry fee to gain access to the event. This includes football matches, music concerts/festivals etc.
• Charitable Events - in this case there is financial gain but for non-profit charitable distribution. This includes the London Marathon and charity concerts etc.
• Community Events - these are not for personal or corporate financial gain, but may raise funds for community institutions, and are generally for community or local interest purposes. This includes carnivals and festivals, amateur sporting events, religious parades etc.
• Statutory Events - events where there is no financial gain to the organiser and which reflect a constitutional right or cause of specific royal, historical or public interest. This category includes state events, ceremonial events, public demonstrations etc.

7. In respect of the above definitions, the current MPA policy is that no charges will be levied in relation to the policing of statutory events with the same approach taken for charity and community events in recognition of their importance to the well being of London. In January 2005, the MPA developed the policy further in respect of the policing of community and/or charity events by allowing charges for special police services to be levied on those occasions where it is clear that such events include aspects which are commercial for profit such as corporate hospitality and trading by exhibitors.

Commercial Events

8. A total of 12 commercial events were held between 1 April 2010 and 31 March 2011, which individually required the deployment of more than 300 police officer shifts. The estimated total cost of policing these events is £2.5m, of which £1.9m is opportunity costs, £0.3m relates to overtime costs and £0.3m is additional other costs. The MPS recovered £1.5m. The table at Appendix 1 details the income received for each “Commercial” event (charges were levied by the MPS for every event that met the current “Commercial” event cost recovery criteria and payment has been received in all cases).

9. The number of commercial events that individually required the deployment of more than 300 police officer shifts, decreased in 2010 - 11 due to a review of police deployment at football matches. The MPS and Football Clubs worked together in an effort to keep MPS costs and associated charges levied upon Clubs to a minimum by reviewing the categorisation of matches and the scale of deployments to ensure that they were appropriate.

10. The discrepancy between costs incurred and costs recovered is mainly due to the cost recovery arrangements that are currently in place in relation to the policing of football matches. Under the arrangements the charges levied against football clubs are based upon the hourly rates for the special services of police as per Section 25 of the Police Act 1996 and the costs recovered reflect the arrangements in place with football clubs during the period that this report covers.

Legal Implications

11. The statutory power to charge for special police services is dealt with at paragraph 5 of section C to this report. Section 25 of the Police Act 1996, as interpreted by the case law referred to at paragraph 27 of Part B above, requires that the Special Police Services (SPS) agreement denotes a request from the event organiser for SPS and that the services to be provided are not core policing. The agreement will detail how the services will be costed and charged. This will ensure that the SPS agreement is binding and enforceable. Directorate of Legal Services (DLS) advice has been provided to support the MPS contribution to the ongoing national dialogue regarding charging arrangements for policing football matches referred to at paragraphs 25 to 30 of Part B above.

12. In the relevant period there have been 19 claims under the Riot Act. No payments have been made to date. DLS is not able to confirm the number of Public Order claims because it does not record these claims separately but they are instead included with all civil claims.

Environmental Implications

13. There are no environmental implications:

Risk Implications

14. The function of this report is purely to report historical costs incurred during the previous financial year so there are no direct risk implications. Risk management is integrated into the Service’s budget, business planning and performance management processes. Business Groups and Management Board monitor risks on a regular basis.

D. Background papers

• MPA Full Authority 20 December 2007 Report Number 9 (A review of the Metropolitan Police Authority policy on charging for events)
• MPA Finance and Resources Committee 15 July 2010 Report Number 8 (The Cost of policing Public Order Events 2009 - 10).

E. Contact details

Report authors: Karim Mahamdallie, Director of Business Support, MPS

For more information contact:

MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18

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