Attacks on police in Yorkshire rise during lockdown

Police have been coughed at and spat at during the coronavirus outbreak

Attacks on police in parts of Yorkshire have risen sharply over the course of the coronavirus lockdown, figures show.

Officers have been coughed and spat at with some hurt while dealing with a rise in domestic violence cases during the pandemic.

Over a seven-week period there were 469 assaults on officers in West and South Yorkshire compared to 326 for the same period last year.

Police chiefs said the violence was "totally unacceptable".

In West Yorkshire, the number of assaults has increased by 45%, rising from 255 between May and July in 2019, to 371 this year.

Figures for the same period show a 38% increase in assaults, from 71 to 98, in South Yorkshire.

South Yorkshire Police Federation chairman Steve Kent said attacks had become a daily occurence

Steve Kent, chairman of the South Yorkshire Police Federation, said attacks on frontline staff had become a daily occurrence.

"Last week we had an officer who had a potential broken jaw to officers who have been spat at, [and] coughed at.

"During lockdown people have been kept at home, stuck in their homes, people have then started drinking a lot."

Mr Kent said the force had seen a steep rise in domestic violence with officers getting injured while dealing with the cases.

• More stories from around Yorkshire

Dr Alan Billings, South Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner, said: "There can be no excuse for the levels of violence the police and other emergency service workers are currently having to face.

"They and their families should not have to have these additional anxieties at the start of every shift."

West Yorkshire Police Assistant Chief Constable Tim Kingsman said: "It is very disappointing that we have seen a recent rise in assaults on staff over the last few weeks, especially since Covid has been prevalent.

"I want to make it clear that we will seek to prosecute in each and every case where a member of emergency services staff is attacked."

Follow BBC Yorkshire on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail] or send video here.