More than half of Britons support the police’s actions at the vigil for Sarah Everard on Saturday, a new poll suggests.
Officers faced heavy criticism for their handling of the Clapham Common event – but more than half of people believe police were right to act in the way they did, according to research commissioned by Crest Advisory.
The YouGov survey revealed 53 per cent of the overall population backed officers’ decision to break up the south London gathering and arrest those who refused to leave, with only 32 per cent saying they were wrong to do so.
The poll of 1,672 adults found 56 per cent of men and 50 per cent of women backed the Metropolitan Police’s tactics.
On the topic of who was most responsible for the scuffles that broke out between police and attendees, 43 per cent said ‘members of the public’ while 29 per cent blamed police.
Nine per cent blamed the Government, which brought in the coronavirus restrictions limiting gatherings.
Opinions were split across party lines, with a huge 71 per cent of Conservative voters agreeing that police were right to break up the gathering and arrest those who refused to leave, compared to just 37 per cent of Labour supporters.
Police try to break up vigil for Sarah Everard at the bandstand on Clapham Common, March 13
The YouGov survey revealed 53 per cent of the overall population backed officers’ decision to break up the south London gathering and arrest those who refused to leave, with only 32 per cent saying they were wrong to do so
Opinions were split across party lines, with a huge 71 per cent of Conservative voters agreeing that police were right to break up the gathering and arrest those who refused to leave, compared to just 37 per cent of Labour supporters
On the topic of who was most responsible for the scuffles that broke out between police and attendees, 43 per cent said ‘members of the public’ while 29 per cent blamed police
Patsy Stevenson is pictured being held on the floor by police at the vigil on March 13
Nearly half (46 per cent) of those aged 18-24 said officers should not have intervened in the way they did.
Metropolitan Police Deputy Commissioner Sir Stephen House today said that between midday and 6pm the vigil to Sarah Everard at Clapham Common had complied with Covid regulations.
A vigil for Ms Everard was held on March 13
But he told members of the London Assembly Police and Crime Committee on Wednesday that after this people had tried to make speeches from the bandstand and the crowd density had increased.
He added: ‘As far as we were concerned the events between midday and 6 o’clock were almost exclusively Covid compliant.
‘However, around about 6 o’clock at night my officers tell me there was a significant change in the dynamic – people began to gather around the bandstand and some people began to make speeches.
‘Inevitably when that happened the crowd compacted and compressed to hear what was being said and it became a much more difficult situation for us to reconcile with Covid legislation.
‘We believe that when the crowd density increased, Covid regulations were no longer being followed.’
Chairman of the Metropolitan Police Federation Ken Marsh had defended officers’ actions following the clashes, claiming the vigil for Ms Everard had been ‘hijacked’ by Antifa, Black Lives Matter and Extinction Rebellion protesters.
‘It looks overbearing and heavyhanded, it’s not. It’s to protect you as much as us,’ he said.
Police clash with mourners at a vigil in Clapham Common, south London, on Saturday after the event was officially cancelled
The bandstand was surrounded by flowers laid three-foot deep as people gathered for a vigil, March 13
Crest tracked public opinion on the police approach to the pandemic since the first lockdown in 2020, finding evidence that support for officers is dropping
‘If it was just a peaceful vigil, there would have been no issues but it wasn’t unfortunately. We had to take the action we had to take.’
The Met’s Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick has been resisting pressure to resign over the clashes – but ministers came out to back her position.
The survey also asked about new Government proposals to allow the police to impose stricter conditions on protests after the pandemic.
Opinion about the plans, contained in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, is sharply divided, with 38 per cent ‘strongly’ or ‘slightly’ supporting them, and 36 per cent opposing.
Crest tracked public opinion on the police approach to the pandemic since the first lockdown in 2020, finding evidence that support for officers is dropping.
In April last year 42 per cent of people said they ‘fully support’ the police approach, compared with 27 per cent in January 2021, and 21 per cent in the most recent poll.
Police officers scuffle with attendees gathered at a band-stand on Clapham Common, south London on March 13. One attendee holds a sign saying ‘ACAB’
Fights broke out as people battled against police officers on Saturday evening in Clapham Common
One woman held up a sign that read ‘we live in fear. Not all survive. Police do not protect us’ in Clapham, March 13
The number of respondents saying police are ‘too heavy handed’ has also risen in the first months of 2021 from 7 per cent to 12 per cent – and those calling for ‘tougher action’ have dropped from 22 per cent to 18 per cent.
But overall, 57 per cent of the public fully or partially supported the police approach to the pandemic.
Harvey Redgrave, chief executive of Crest Advisory, said: ‘Today’s poll shows the police retain widespread public consent for their approach to the pandemic, despite the negative headlines of the last few days.
‘A majority of men and women thought the police were right to break up the vigil.
‘However, there are also warning signs for police leaders: support for their approach is more qualified than it was a year ago, with evidence of rising concern about heavy-handedness. Younger people are far less supportive of police methods.’
Addressing the poll findings about the new Bill, Redgrave said: ‘The government’s new proposals on the policing of protest do not appear to have clear majority consent, which will fuel fears that the legislation is likely to put the police in an increasingly awkward position.’