(remember you do not have to give your name under a section 60 search)
Stop and search powers extended at climate camp
http://www.kentnews.co.uk/kent-news/Stop-and-search-powers-extended-at-climate-camp-newsinkent15196.aspx?news=local Police can now stop and search anyone at the Climate Camp for Action in Kent without needing reasonable grounds to do so.
Officers had their powers extended after the command team at the site near Kingsnorth claimed police were still finding people carrying items that could be used as weapons.
Kent Police’s treatment of eco-activists at the camp, who are protesting over E.ON plan to build a new coal power station at the site, has been criticised since the first campers arrived last Thursday.
Bob Marshall-Andrews said the decision to use riot gear, including shields and helmets, was “provocative and heavy-handed”, on Wednesday.
Police said tension had heightened on Thursday due to a “hardcore group” intent on criminal activity.
Assistant Chief Constable Gary Beautridge said: “Kent Police has held back from extending stop and search powers since the climate camp protestors arrived but today [Thursday] we have felt it is necessary to put an order in place that covers the whole of the Hoo peninsula.
“So far we have arrested three people for possessing bladed instruments. We’re also finding people who are carrying items that could be used as weapons.
“We want local people to feel safe in the knowledge that we are seizing these items. We have a duty to keep local residents, protestors and our officers safe.”
Police are allowed to extend their stop and search powers under Section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act.
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