Former riot cop Mike Neville has told GB News he fears for Britain after police “ran away” from riots in Leeds.
Chaos ensued in Harehills on Thursday as officers responded to reports of social workers experiencing hostility when dealing with a child protection issue.
A bus was set on fire and a police car was overturned as residents were urged to stay at home, with a large police presence and helicopters deployed to the area.
Neville said the police were fearful of the chaotic scenes and accused many of running away as the violent scenes spiralled out of control.
Mike Neville says he fears for Britain’s future
GB NEWS / TIKTOK / REUTERS
“I would rather stand and die than run away”, he said.
“There’s nothing worse for the public to see police running away. They should be running towards it as we often see them do.
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“This is an area detached from society and I fear we see this two-tier society. If it was Leeds United fans protesting about fans being sacked, the response would be rather more robust.
“My view is, once you put on that uniform, you put yourself at risk. That is the job. It sends out the message to people to live in fear.”
Asked by Daubney if the bedlam in Harehills was a “taste of things to come”, Neville admitted he is fearful that may be the case.
“The people police themselves in areas like these”, he said.
Mike Neville joined Martin Daubney on GB News
GB NEWS
“The police are not engaging with it. It’s not good enough, they keep telling us about diversity but they just need to recruit some good officers. They need officers who will respond, where necessary, in a robust manner.
“It doesn’t need to be talked about, it needs to be sorted out straight away.”
On Friday morning, four officers guarded the scene around a torched bus in Foundry Approach.
Some residents gathered to look at the damage, while a visibly emotional group of people believed to be linked to the initial incident sat on a patch of grass nearby.
Gang of thugs overturn police car in Leeds as riots break out on streetTikTok/SnapchatGreen Party councillor for Gipton and Harehills, Mothin Ali, described the scenes as “absolute mayhem” and called for the community to stay calm and come together after the incident.
Speaking to reporters at the scene on Friday, he said: “The scene was absolute mayhem. It was quite chaotic. We were trying to shelter the police, act as human shields for the police, because they were there without helmets, without shields, being pelted with bricks and bottles, so we were trying to calm people down and act as a protective barrier.”
Ali said the local neighbourhood policing team was “absolutely fantastic” and had aimed to “not escalate things”, but it had been the wrong decision for officers to withdraw at the first incident.
“The idea was not to try and antagonise things, to let things fizzle out. In hindsight we could criticise that but at the time when they’re making the decision, it’s tough,” he said.
“I don’t know who was in charge but I’d like to speak to them.”