PETER HITCHENS: Now we know why the police are too busy to bother with all those shoplifters and thugs
Behold PC Stephen Smith and PC Rachel Comotto. A stout jury of British citizens has just examined their actions in a South Coast care home and decided that what they did was not a crime. So it is legal, too. I've watched film of this event and advise you to do so, even if it makes you very angry. Because it contains some crucial truths about this country as it now is.
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The Independent
5 minutes ago
- The Independent
Premier League club in row with council over proposed housing near stadium
Premier League newcomers Sunderland have opposed plans to build houses near their Stadium of Light ground, saying development could have 'catastrophic consequences'. Chairman Kyril Louis-Dreyfus said the club will make formal objections to the city council's plans to allow for homes to be built in what had been a buffer zone around the stadium. Sunderland City Council has proposed that 600 homes, including maisonettes, townhouses and family homes, should be built south of the stadium, as part of a wider redevelopment of the city centre. Sunderland City Council chief executive Patrick Melia has insisted that the stadium was a 'key asset for the city' and the redevelopment plans would enhance fans' experience. Former chairman Sir Bob Murray, who oversaw the move from Roker Park to the 49,000-seat ground in 1997, called the change a 'disgrace'. He said the local authority had previously agreed protections which would prevent development near the stadium, thus allowing the club to increase capacity if needed, but that the city council had 'torn them up'. Sir Bob said having houses up close to the Stadium of Light risked hemming it in, which was the cause of the move from Roker Park. Mr Louis-Dreyfus has now spoken out against the plans as well. He said: 'As the custodian of Sunderland AFC, it is my duty to safeguard the future of our club. 'This includes the Stadium of Light – the beating heart of our city. 'Unfortunately, Sunderland City Council has recently taken steps relating to the Sheepfolds development that could have catastrophic operational consequences on our club and, by extension, our community. 'We are under no illusion that the city needs a more appropriate housing provision and support those endeavours fully. 'However, later this week we will be submitting a formal objection against the proposals relating to the Sheepfolds and I encourage all city stakeholders to come together and join us in protecting the future of our football club and the City of Sunderland. 'Together, we have limitless potential, but it will only be realised through delivering on a shared purpose and vision.' There were fears that having homes close to the stadium could impact its ability to host major concerts as well as block any future expansion plans. The Stadium of Light has hosted England games and was built on the site of the former Monkwearmouth Colliery. In response to the objections, council chief Mr Melia said: 'We are very much invested in the future of the Stadium of Light and recognise it as a key asset for the city. 'It is our view that the proposals set out for the Sheepfolds neighbourhoods will improve operations and fan experience in terms of match days and other events and we remain committed to working with SAFC in relation to their plans for the expansion of the Stadium of Light – we have held many discussions with Mr Louis-Dreyfus and his team to this effect. 'This consultation process provides a real opportunity for the public and stakeholders to share their thoughts with us as the local planning authority and we will consider all views and comments prior to determination of the application.'
The Independent
5 minutes ago
- The Independent
Council seeks High Court ban on asylum seekers being housed at protest-hit Epping hotel
Epping Forest District Council has applied for an interim High Court injunction in a bid to stop asylum seekers being housed at the Bell Hotel in the town. Documents were lodged with the High Court in London on Tuesday, the council said in a statement. It comes after a series of protests in recent weeks outside the hotel, after an asylum seeker was charged with sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl. Councillor Chris Whitbread, Leader of Epping Forest District Council, said: 'The current situation cannot go on. If the Bell Hotel was a nightclub we could have closed it down long ago. 'So far as the council is aware, there is no criminal record checking of individuals who might only have been in the country a matter of days before being housed at the hotel. 'There are five schools and a residential care home within the vicinity of the hotel. The use by the Home Office of the premises for asylum seekers poses a clear risk of further escalating community tensions already at a high, and the risk of irreparable harm to the local community. 'This will only increase with the start of the new school year. We are frustrated that the Home Office continues not to listen. 'In our view placing asylum seekers in the Bell Hotel is a clear breach of planning permission. It is not in use as a hotel, and it doesn't function as a hotel. 'The establishment of a centre to accommodate asylum seekers in this particular location, in close proximity to five schools, a residential care home, and the shops and amenities of the market town of Epping is not appropriate in planning terms.'
The Guardian
6 minutes ago
- The Guardian
National guard arrives in DC as mayors warn of Trump power grab
National guard troops began to arrive at their headquarters in Washington DC on Tuesday as Democratic mayors warned Donald Trump against expanding his law and order power grab in other major cities. The US president announced on Monday that he was sending the national guard into the nation's capital and putting city police under federal control, even though the violent crime rate is at a 30-year low. 'We have other cities also that are bad,' he told reporters, citing the Democratic strongholds of Chicago, Los Angeles and New York. 'And then, of course, you have Baltimore and Oakland. You don't even mention them anymore, they're so far gone.' Stephen Miller, an influential White House deputy chief of staff, stepped up the rhetoric on Tuesday, tweeting without evidence: 'Crime stats in big blue cities are fake. The real rates of crime, chaos & dysfunction are orders of magnitude higher. Everyone who lives in these areas knows this. They program their entire lives around it. Democrats are trying to unravel civilization. Pres Trump will save it.' All five cities named by Trump are run by Black mayors. Most were outspoken in denouncing the president's move. Chicago mayor Brandon Johnson said in a statement: 'Sending in the national guard would only serve to destabilize our city and undermine our public safety efforts.' Brandon Scott, the mayor of Baltimore, said: 'When it comes to public safety in Baltimore, he should turn off the right-wing propaganda and look at the facts. Baltimore is the safest it's been in over 50 years.' Barbara Lee, the mayor of Oakland, wrote on X: 'President Trump's characterization of Oakland is wrong and based in fear-mongering in an attempt to score cheap political points.' Karen Bass, the mayor of Los Angeles, where troops were sent earlier this month in a crackdown on protests, posted: 'Another experiment by the Administration, another power grab from local government. This is performative. This is a stunt. It always has been and always will be.' Trump took command of the Washington DC police department and deployed the national guard under laws and constitutional powers that give the federal government more sway over the nation's capital than other cities. But Democrats raised concerns that Washington DC could be a blueprint for similar strongarm tactics elsewhere. Christina Henderson, a Washington DC at-large councilmember, told CNN on Tuesday: 'I was listening to the president's press conference yesterday, and I think it should be concerning to all Americans that he talked about other cities. 'The District of Columbia, for decades, without statehood, has always been used as a petri dish, where Congress or the federal government is trying out ideas here. So, I would hope that folks don't lose sight of what's happening in the district. And even if they don't live here, they fight hard with us.' California governor Gavin Newsom warned that Trump 'will gaslight his way into militarising any city he wants in America'. JB Pritzker, the governor of Illinois, insisted that the president 'has absolutely no right and no legal ability to send troops into the city of Chicago, and so I reject that notion'. He added: 'You've seen that he doesn't follow the law. I have talked about the fact that the Nazis in Germany in the '30s tore down a constitutional republic in just 53 days. It does not take much, frankly, and we have a president who seems hell-bent on doing just that.'
