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Mr. Peter Brooke (Cities of London and Westminster): May I express appreciation to the Home Secretary for the fact that his office advised me before lunch that he was going to make the statement? I also thank him for the tone in which it was delivered. Despite the damage and disorder that occurred in the streets, will he confirm that all the markets of the City of London remained open on Friday and today? Secondly, can he give the House any information about the disparate groups across the world to which he referred in his statement?
Mr. Straw: I am grateful for the right hon. Gentleman's opening remarks. I can indeed confirm that the markets remained open and I associate myself with the appreciation expressed by the right hon. Member for Maidstone and The Weald (Miss Widdecombe) to the staff of the LIFFE building for their courage in seeking to ensure that damage was as limited as possible--and to the many other staff across the City of London and elsewhere who protected their buildings and the people in them to ensure that all the City's markets continued to function.
On the disparate groups, it appears that the protests were linked in some incoherent way to the G8 summit in Cologne. I fail to understand the direct connection. We have little information--certainly information that we can make publicly available--about any connection between those groups and others. As far as we can judge, they were entirely, and very sadly, home grown.
Mr. John Wilkinson (Ruislip-Northwood):
May I add my thanks to those of my right hon. Friend the Member for Cities of London and Westminster (Mr. Brooke) to the Home Secretary for volunteering this statement rather than waiting for a private notice question on a matter of great gravity for the City of London in particular and for London as a whole? Will the monthly meetings with the Commissioner--or was it commissioners--of police continue after the institution of the Metropolitan police authority when the Greater London Authority comes into effect next July? In that context, can he assure us that after July 2000, where matters relating to the policing of the capital affect public order on a national scale, the Home Secretary will still come to the House and make statements such as today's?
Mr. Straw:
I thank the hon. Gentleman for the tone of his remarks and for his appreciation. My monthly
As the Under-Secretary, my hon. Friend the Member for Vauxhall (Kate Hoey) made clear during the many debates on the establishment of a Metropolitan police authority, the Home Secretary of the day will continue to have a role in the policing of London. That is taken account of in the special arrangements that have been made. For example, a representative of the Home Secretary will be on the police authority and the Home Secretary will be involved to a degree greater than that which applies to police forces outside London in the appointment of the Commissioner.
I anticipate that while there will not be bilaterals with the Commissioner arising from my--by then non- existent--position as police authority, meetings will continue because of the Commissioner's many national and international responsibilities. Of course, should an occasion such as this arise after July 2000, the Home Secretary of the day--certainly if it is me--will make a statement to the House.
Mr. Douglas Hogg (Sleaford and North Hykeham):
I am sure that the right hon. Gentleman agrees that those who are guilty of such public order offences are enemies of democracy and should, if found guilty, be punished with the full severity of the law. Does he agree that a liability to pay substantial financial compensation to those who have suffered loss is a further deterrent? That could be done in two ways. A convicting court could impose a compensation order, or those who have suffered loss could sue, in the civil courts, those responsible, either the instigators or those who have committed the criminal act. Does he agree that that should be encouraged, because a huge financial consequence is a serious deterrent, even if the people concerned may be largely without means?
Mr. Straw:
The right hon. and learned Gentleman is entirely correct. The question of compensation orders is not for me but for the courts. However, I hope that those concerned will take note of the right hon. and learned Gentleman's comments and my endorsement of them. The right hon. and learned Gentleman also made the imaginative suggestion that, regardless of whether criminal convictions are brought, action for compensation should be taken against some of the organisers of the demonstration. I hope that that suggestion will be taken on board by the businesses affected and by those concerned in the City.
Dr. Julian Lewis (New Forest, East):
The Home Secretary said frankly that the demonstration was a premeditated and organised riot. Does he recall that, until just over a year ago, an element in the MI5 Security Service--for which the Home Secretary has responsibility--called F Branch was responsible for
Does the Home Secretary further recall that it was announced a little over a year ago with a fanfare of trumpets that MI5 was no longer monitoring subversive organisations? Will the Home Secretary confirm that that remains the case and that the Security Service did nothing whatsoever to investigate and monitor the situation or to advise the police about how these events could have been avoided?
Mr. Straw:
I know the hon. Gentleman takes an interest in such matters--but a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.
I remember no fanfare nor any trumpets in respect of any statement about the Security Service and subversion. Following the collapse of the Berlin wall, the Security Service's interest in subversion--in the old sense of the word--has certainly declined. It is also the case--I make no apologies for the fact that I do not intend to give any details about this subject in a public forum such as the House--that the law enforcement agencies continue to be interested in those who pose a serious threat to public order.
Mr. Tim Loughton (East Worthing and Shoreham):
As someone who has had an office in the City for the past 15 years, I associate myself with the Home Secretary's praise for the police action--particularly in terms of the intelligence that the police shared with City firms in advance of Friday's demonstration and throughout the day. I also praise the City for not allowing its business to be disrupted, despite City workers being trapped in their offices while 5,000 members of rent-a-mob brayed outside.
Will the Home Secretary comment on newspaper reports that many of the so-called demonstrators on Friday were paid and provided with packed lunches? If those details are forthcoming, what action will be taken against the organisers? What use was made of the so-called ring of steel that was set up in the City some years ago primarily in response to IRA bombings at that time? What action was taken to man those many posts around the City to prevent entry to the area by people who had premeditated ideas of causing violence and were armed with crowbars and other obviously offensive weapons? Does the Home Secretary think that enough action was taken on the day to stop such people gaining entry in the first place?
Mr. Straw:
I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his remarks about the sharing of intelligence and for his appreciation of the work of the City of London police. A large contingent of Metropolitan police officers--slightly larger than that of City police--was brought in under the mutual aid arrangements. I believe that the arrangements for sharing intelligence worked well.
Turning to the hon. Gentleman's other points, the policing of such events does not necessarily go according to plan. The organisers of such events do not share their plan--such as it is--with the police, because they wish to effect a high degree of disruption, disorder and violence. I have no information about whether any demonstrators were provided with packed lunches or were paid to attend. That may be a matter for the police investigation.
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