Police officers across the country are celebrating Theresa May’s resignation, having been thoroughly alienated by the Prime Minister in her previous role as Home Secretary under David Cameron.
Theresa May presided over massive cuts to police budgets and manpower during her tenure, and made “taking on” the Police Federation which represents rank and file officers up to Chief Inspector one of her signature stances — although she seemingly enjoyed a more collegial relationship with politically correct senior officers, such as Metropolitan Police chief Cressida Dick.
As Home Secretary, Mrs May attended Police Federation conferences and publicly berated delegates for “crying wolf” and “scaremongering” when they claimed the cuts — abetted by the left-wing Liberal Democrats, who were in a coalition government with the Tories until 2015 — would destroy neighbourhood policing and lead to the adoption of a “paramilitary style” of policing.
These words came back to haunt her following the Manchester Arena suicide bombing in 2017, when it was revealed that a Greater Manchester Police Officer — who had been decorated as community policeman of the year by May herself — personally warned her that the course she was pursuing could enable a terror attack.
“I have worked in inner city Manchester for 15 years,” Inspector Damian O’Reilly told the then-Home Secretary in 2015.
“I felt passionate about what I was doing but in 2010 I had to leave. I couldn’t take it any more because the changes that have been imposed have caused community policing to collapse.
“Intelligence has dried up. There aren’t local officers, they don’t know what’s happening. They’re all reactive, there’s no proactive policing locally. That is the reality ma’am.”
“Neighbourhood policing is critical to dealing with terrorism. We run the risk here of letting communities down, putting officers at risk and ultimately risking national security and I would ask you to seriously consider the budget and the level of cuts over the next five years,” he urged.
The Manchester attack was indeed followed by “paramilitary style” policing, with officer numbers bolstered by having armed, uniform soldiers patrol the streets alongside them.
The Greater Manchester Police branch of the Police Federation was particularly scathing when news of Mrs May’s long-awaited resignation finally broke.
Chairman Stu Berry said that there are now 21,339 fewer police officers and 15,894 fewer members of police staff than in 2010 — despite the general population exploding and violent crime climbing dramatically — and suggested that “officers will shed no tears at her departure” in a statement published on social media.
“I feel that I cannot varnish my words following Theresa May’s decision to leave office. During her time as Home Secretary she decimated the Police Service to near breaking point and significantly reduced the service we provide to the public,” Berry said.
“Her legacy is one of misery for thousands of people. This country a less safer place [sic] due to her ideology as serious crime statistics soar in every major town and city in this country. Our members and the Public we serve will continue to suffer the consequences of her dogma for decades to come,” he insisted.
“The emotion that she exhibited today were tears for her own self-made demise. It is a shame that she did not have similar empathy for countless victims of crime that could have been avoided.”
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