Metropolitan Police Authority conference: Together against terror - widening the public debate on response to terrorist threat

56/05
16 November 2005

The MPA will be holding a one-day conference ‘Together Against Terror’ on Monday 12 December 2005 with the aim of widening the London and national debate on how our society should respond to terrorist threat. Attendees will include representatives from London’s communities, academics, police officers and politicians.

Len Duvall, Chair of the Authority, said:

“The MPA, together with the MPS, has been holding public discussions on issues around terrorism and community response since the atrocities of 7 July when it became urgent to evolve a new strategy for counter terrorism policing.

“The MPA hosted the’ Communities Together’ conference on 11 July 2005 and promised ‘to keep policing issues in the public eye’. The debate was progressed at the Full Authority on 27 October when Operation Kratos was discussed in public and the Commissioner Sir Ian Blair, who will be speaking at the conference, built on the debate in his Dimbleby lecture ‘What kind of police service do we want’. The conference aims to bring together work that has been undertaken since the London bombings and give new direction and impetus to the united fight against terrorism. By including public participation in the policing debate this event will signal an important step change.

“The MPA’s job is to consult with London’s communities to find out what they expect from the police. We aim to make sure that that London’s police are accountable for the services they provide and work together to increase community confidence and trust.”

Notes to editors

1. The conference will be held at Central Westminster Hall, Storey’s Gate, Westminster SW1H 9NH.

2. Issues to be discussed at the conference include:

• Terrorist threat - how real is it?
• Lethal force - do the ends justify the means?
• Divided we stand - which counter terrorism tactics command public support?
• Liberty versus security - must we choose between our safety and our rights?
• Scaremongers and sensationalists - do the media inform or alarm?

2. The core of the programme is a series of speeches on different aspects of the debate by national and international experts. Each speech will be followed by questions from the invited audience, followed by focused group discussions.

3. The participants will be stakeholders recruited from across all of London’s communities.

Send an e-mail linking to this page

Feedback