Federation confident right PPE kit is available for officers should it be needed

ESSEX Police Federation is confident officers will have the right PPE kit to deal with any violent protests or disorder they might encounter over the summer.

The Metropolitan Police were blasted by the Metropolitan Police Federation for sending out officers without what they said was the proper PSU equipment they needed to deal with the minority who decided to cause trouble at recent protests in the capital.

Essex Police Federation Chair Laura Heggie says she believes officers in Essex won’t find themselves in the same situation.

Protests from across the political divide have so far passed off peacefully in the county she said.

However some senior police chiefs have told the service to prepare for a summer of discontent, all set against the need to keep safe as the pandemic hopefully starts to slow.

“There are concerns, and I’d like to hope that the majority of people that are having these demonstrations are there just to get their voice heard,” Laura said.

“The minority aren’t there to get their voice heard; they’re there just to cause disruption, harm, damage and also to assault other people.

“With the pubs opening, I’m hoping that we’re not going to have public order offences and we’re not going to have public disorder. People just need to be sensible.

“I am confident that Essex Police officers won’t be in the same situation as their Met colleagues.”

COVID-19 is still a risk to officers when they are policing large crowds too, Laura warned, and an Essex force order to ensure PPE is used when social distancing isn’t possible is the right decision.

“We’re fortunate in Essex that at our last demonstration the public order commander directed that if there wasn’t social distancing, then PPE would be worn.

“So if officers were deployed in cordons or close proximity to each other, even just travelling within the vans together, they had to be wearing facemasks. It’s for their own protection, and for the protection of their colleagues.”