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Hampshire police and crime commissioner backs government’s Public Order Bill




HAMPSHIRE’S police and crime commissioner (PCC) has backed controversial legislation giving officers more power to stop protesters.

The government’s Public Order Bill was debated in the House of Lords last week amid counter-arguments it was undermining the right to protest.

But Conservative PCC Donna Jones spoke in support of increased stop-and-search powers and the use of banning orders, saying: "The public have had enough.”

Hampshire police and crime commissioner Donna Jones backed the government's Public Order Bill
Hampshire police and crime commissioner Donna Jones backed the government's Public Order Bill

She went on: “The mass [disruption] to law-abiding citizens going about their business has to stop.

“That’s why this new legislation is vital to give the police the legal flexibility they need to ensure public disruptions don’t continue.”

But she also voicing her support for people’s right to protest lawfully, adding: “Freedom of speech is an absolute requirement of all civilised societies. But it must be done in a lawful, civilised way."

Concerns about the legislation was expressed late last year by Liberal Democrat Cllr David Harrison, who said: “I am worried that it will be too easy to sanction people who protest, stopping them from doing so and putting them in prison for almost a year if they fail to comply.

“It is all too easy to slip into a situation where we are little better than China or Russia, where what the government wishes to do cannot be effectively challenged.”



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