Police defend Birmingham pub bombing memorial fines

Julie Hambleton said she would not pay the £200 fine

Police have defended their actions after MPs accused them of being "morally wrong" for issuing Covid fines to Birmingham pub bombings campaigners.

West Midlands Police said its response was "proportionate" after reviewing £200 fines issued to seven people.

Those sent fixed penalty notices included campaigner Julie Hambleton, whose sister Maxine was among the 21 victims killed in the 1974 bombings.

Lawyers acting for six of the seven said the notices would be challenged.

Conservative MPs Gary Sambrook and Nicola Richards tweeted a letter addressed to the force's Chief Constable Sir Dave Thompson on Friday calling the fines "deeply concerning" and "morally wrong".

Following a police-approved convoy through Birmingham on 21 November - marking the anniversary of the bombings - Ms Hambleton said she got out of her vehicle to briefly thank people who had gathered outside West Midlands Police's Lloyd House headquarters.

She said those involved wore masks and were socially distanced.

Assistant Chief Constable Chris Todd wrote an inquiry into the 15-minute gathering found those present were "in breach" of coronavirus legislation - specifically relating to "gatherings of more than two people in a public place".

At the time, England was subject to its second lockdown, before the tier system was introduced in December.

ACC Chris Todd said the fines related to a 15-minute gathering outside police headquarters

ACC Todd said: "On the day, we were responding to the spontaneous nature of these gatherings, their intention to gather was not communicated in advance.

"If this had been known, a different policing response would have been in place."

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He said similar action had been taken against people at a protest in Wolverhampton in mid-November, where 12 arrests were made, while a rally in West Bromwich in December was under investigation.

Analysis

By Kathryn Stanczyszyn, Birmingham political reporter, BBC Radio WM

Public opinion appears to be split on whether police were following the letter of the law or simply failing to use discretion in an instance where it might have been warranted.

The force says its response was proportionate but the seven people fined at the end of this memorial rally say they were being proportionate too.

They say they were remembering their loved ones and sharing their pain in an approved way - that happened to end in an impromptu situation that put no-one in danger.

There are those that agree but others say the pandemic has created many heart-wrenching situations and that grey area can't come into it. Any breaking of the rules must lead to action.

That one of the seven is standing to be the region's next Police and Crime Commissioner adds another element. Julie Hambleton says she expects to win her fight against this fine and it won't impede her campaign.

The MP for Ladywood, Shabana Mahmood, whose constituency covers the city centre, said she appreciated policing in a pandemic was "extremely difficult" but said there had been previous examples of officers exercising "discretion" while policing peaceful protests.

"In this case, a spontaneous instance for those attending a memorial to those lost in the pub bombings that caused such pain and trauma for our city, the police did not use similar discretion," she said.

"I think this was a mistake, one I hope they can reflect on and put right by rescinding the fines issued."

Twenty-one people were killed in two blasts on 21 November 1974

Ms Hambleton, who last summer announced she would stand in Police and Crime Commissioner elections in May, said to pay the fine would "in essence [be] stamping on the grave of my sister and the other 20 victims".

ACC Todd said policing through the pandemic had changed alongside legislation.

"Our policing style has evolved because infection rates have continued to rise since lockdown two and we therefore seek to enforce breaches quicker than we previously have," he said.