Suella Braverman blasted for 'poor judgement' and 'unjustified' attack by ex-Met officer

Graham Wettone worked at the heart of the Met's operations to police protests in the capital and says Braverman's comments show "exceptionally poor judgement" and are "unjustified and unwarranted".

In a Times article, the Home Secretary said right-wing protesters are met with a hard response by officers while “pro-Palestinian mobs” are “largely ignored, even when clearly breaking the law”.

But Wettone has told GB News that Braverman is wrong and that two tier policing in respect of left or right wing protests doesn't exist.

The Home Secretary claimed that “pro-Palestinian mobs” are “largely ignored, even when clearly breaking the law”.

It came after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had called in Metropolitan Police chief Sir Mark Rowley for an emergency meeting about the march planned in London, saying he would hold the Scotland Yard boss “accountable” if there was trouble.

Rowley has faced pressure from senior Tories to ban Saturday’s march in London, but has said the law would only allow him to do so only in “extreme cases”.

Following their talks on Wednesday, Sunak said the planned protest on Armistice Day is “not just disrespectful but offends our heartfelt gratitude to the memory of those who gave so much so that we may live in freedom and peace today” and “part of that freedom is the right to peacefully protest”.

But writing in The Times, Braverman said: “I do not believe that these marches are merely a cry for help for Gaza.

“They are an assertion of primacy by certain groups — particularly Islamists — of the kind we are more used to seeing in Northern Ireland. Also disturbingly reminiscent of Ulster are the reports that some of Saturday’s march group organisers have links to terrorist groups, including Hamas.”

Braverman claimed “there is a perception that senior police officers play favourites when it comes to protesters”.

She said: “Right-wing and nationalist protesters who engage in aggression are rightly met with a stern response yet pro-Palestinian mobs displaying almost identical behaviour are largely ignored, even when clearly breaking the law?

Braverman’s article is her latest high-profile intervention, with ministers in recent days seeking to distance themselves from some of her comments.
She has described the protests as “hate marches” and also claimed some people were homeless as a “lifestyle choice”.

Sunak’s meeting with Rowley had appeared to ease some of the tension between the Government and the Met, before Braverman’s latest intervention.

Following his meeting with Rowley, Sunak said police had confirmed the march will not be near the Cenotaph on Whitehall and timings will not conflict with remembrance events.

The Met had urged march organisers to “urgently reconsider” the event on Saturday because of a growing risk of violence, but the pro-Palestinian coalition behind it have refused to call it off.

The force could request the power to ban the event, but that would only apply if there was the threat of serious public disorder which could not be controlled by other measures.

In an indication of the challenges faced by police, the Met said that since the Hamas massacre in Israel on October 7, there have been 188 arrests involving hate crimes or linked to protests in London.

Commander Paul Trevers said: “This is a challenging time for communities in London.

“We continue to see a very concerning rise in both antisemitic and Islamophobic hate crime. This is absolutely unacceptable.”