Police ‘feared campaigners would close down airport’
Dan | 27.08.2010 11:38 | Climate Chaos
Lothian & Borders police attempt to salvage reputation after over-reacting to Camp for Climate Action protest.
In what is clearly a face-saving exercise by Lothian & Borders Police, they have passed a story to Alan McEwen, crime reporter with the Scotsman, that far from massively over-reacting to the Camp for Climate Action – as everyone seems to thing – that had in fact stopped protesters from closing down Edinburgh Airport as well as ‘attacking’ the motorways, banking system and the Tattoo.
The Scotsman claimed that ‘police chiefs feared that a hardcore group of climate camp activists planned to launch a bid to shut down Edinburgh Airport during the protests. Officers had gathered intelligence that the ringleaders of protests which previously targeted Heathrow Airport were descending on the Capital’.
It clearly took a lot of intelligence gathering to work out that one!
‘Intelligence also suggested that the M8 and M9 motorways, Princes Street, and the Tattoo may have come under attack in a effort to cause “maximum economic disruption”. UK police forces have identified around 100 “principal environmental extremists” operating across Britain, and Lothian and Borders Police believe up to 50 were in Edinburgh for last week’s protests.’
Assistant Chief Constable Iain Livingstone told the Scotsman that they ‘knew that RBS would be a potential target and the bank has premises across the city. But we built up intelligence that suggested Edinburgh Airport, the M8 and M9, the city’s banking system, Princes Street and the city centre, and the Tattoo, were major targets’. He said their policy of “control and containment” had reduced the threat of violence, leading to “minimal arrests” and no official complaints being lodged by protesters against police.’ Apparently ‘extremists linked to the Plane Stupid campaign, which saw 1,000 eco-warriors bidding to close down Heathrow three years ago, were known to be in the Capital’.
A little more ‘intelligence gathering’ would have also revealed not only that some Plane Stupid activists actually LIVE in Edinburgh but that L&B Special Branch had made a botched attempt to recruit one of them two years ago.
ACC Livingstone is clearly under pressure to justify the response which is now being questioned by politicians and so is claiming that they stopped all of these other things happening – even though no-one at the camp ever seriously discussed such ideas.
The Scotsman claimed that ‘police chiefs feared that a hardcore group of climate camp activists planned to launch a bid to shut down Edinburgh Airport during the protests. Officers had gathered intelligence that the ringleaders of protests which previously targeted Heathrow Airport were descending on the Capital’.
It clearly took a lot of intelligence gathering to work out that one!
‘Intelligence also suggested that the M8 and M9 motorways, Princes Street, and the Tattoo may have come under attack in a effort to cause “maximum economic disruption”. UK police forces have identified around 100 “principal environmental extremists” operating across Britain, and Lothian and Borders Police believe up to 50 were in Edinburgh for last week’s protests.’
Assistant Chief Constable Iain Livingstone told the Scotsman that they ‘knew that RBS would be a potential target and the bank has premises across the city. But we built up intelligence that suggested Edinburgh Airport, the M8 and M9, the city’s banking system, Princes Street and the city centre, and the Tattoo, were major targets’. He said their policy of “control and containment” had reduced the threat of violence, leading to “minimal arrests” and no official complaints being lodged by protesters against police.’ Apparently ‘extremists linked to the Plane Stupid campaign, which saw 1,000 eco-warriors bidding to close down Heathrow three years ago, were known to be in the Capital’.
A little more ‘intelligence gathering’ would have also revealed not only that some Plane Stupid activists actually LIVE in Edinburgh but that L&B Special Branch had made a botched attempt to recruit one of them two years ago.
ACC Livingstone is clearly under pressure to justify the response which is now being questioned by politicians and so is claiming that they stopped all of these other things happening – even though no-one at the camp ever seriously discussed such ideas.
Dan
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