To think it's outrageous that Kemi Badenoch did not know the police were armed?

[PerditaProvokesEnmity]

Tory MP. She's just been pontificating on Today. Asked about the mother of the twelve year old boy arrested in his own home with a toy gun she accused her of inflaming the rhetoric around race. Interviewer pointed out the police were armed. She did not know this.

People on Mars know armed police stormed the house. She's an utter disgrace.

Random MP doesn't know 12 yo was arrested by armed police = OK, maybe busy in their own areas of interest.

Equalities Minister doesn't know 12 yo was arrested by armed police = mm, that's a bit shit when the story has been running for days and race is being discussed as a possible factor.

Equalities Minister goes on media to give us all the benefit of her opinion on 12 yo being arrested by armed police and doesn't know this, when the story has been running for days = contempt and arrogance.

Well said PekingFaintly.

I have known this happen to two teenage boys mucking about with BB Guns. Both were white but lived on a known estate (one in a infamous high rise). I have also seen it happen for two other fire arms calls (regarding grown adults). Again I don't think race played a factor, although one was black. I think it was the gun issue. We have a very dramatic reaction to fire arms. I think that's a good thing, compared to in America where they are regularly used and normalised. Of course it will have been upsetting, but I don't think this is a race issue per se.

I think that an armed response was appropriate and within policy, as a realistic looking gun was reported.

I feel the mother is at fault here and needs to realise that posessing a BB gun is what put her son at risk.

The holder of the weapon was arrested, the house was checked and he was released without charge. I don't think the caller or police were aware it was a 12 year old on entering the house, and even if they were, 12 year olds can be and are in the possession of weapons and dangerous anti- law enforcement attitudes having been groomed by County lines gangs and the like so the threat was not diminished.

However I think it is pretty crappy that KB felt she was well placed to speak publicly on an incident without knowing the full facts. A quick glance at the BBC website would have told her the police were armed. Perhaps her argument would have been the same but she would have looked a lot more competent.

She didn’t know the police were armed? She’s either lying or dangerously ignorant.

There's a full 1000 post thread on this incident already

Yes the minister should have had the facts

Yes the mother has rightly been criticised

Yes the police acted appropriately

Indeed, we’ve had a 1000 posts on it, it’s been all over the news but the Equalities Minister speaking today on the Today programme apparently knows enough to criticise the mother without knowing the reason the mother was so upset.

Police respond to report of fire arm in a house.

People make it into a race issue

Why on EARTH did the mother allow this in the house. If anyone has to take some responsibility here it is the mother I am fully responsible for what I allow into my house and what my children play with.

The OP referred to the mother's "justified" opinion

I've not seen many agreeing with this.

There's a full 1000 post thread on this incident already

No, there are not 1000 posts on the Equalities Minister's radio interview this morning.

If you are tired of hearing about it, read something else. But as twelve year old children have played with toy guns in my house you must forgive me for wanting a little more from our elected representatives.

They wasted so much time discussing this frankly terrifying incident with a pompous, disingenuous careerist who clearly felt herself so far above the citizens of this country that she Did Not Even Bother to read a headline about the case.

That about sums her up - I have the misfortune of having her as my local MP.

@PerditaProvokesEnmity

There's a full 1000 post thread on this incident already

No, there are not 1000 posts on the Equalities Minister's radio interview this morning.

If you are tired of hearing about it, read something else. But as twelve year old children have played with toy guns in my house you must forgive me for wanting a little more from our elected representatives.

Well quite. That's why u said there was a thread "on this incident"

I agree that any minister should be fully briefed, no argument there.

I didn't introduce the rights and wrongs of a 12 year old "playing" with a replica BB gun, late at night. So forgive me if I choose to pick up on those, particularly when posters are coming out with the "it wouldn't happen to a white boy" crap

"it wouldn't happen to a white boy" crap

It would though (as other posters have pointed out as well). It's a firearm. Do you think white boys are immune from Country Lines and gangs?

Argh, misread! Please ignore the above post...

An example of Kemi "MP of the people" Badenoch's hypocrisy, career focus and general couldn't give a flying fuck attitude.

We have a beautiful sculpture of some refugee children in front of our local church called the children of Calais, designed to "provoke debate about the inhumanity of our response to the children caught up in the ongoing refugee crisis".

Ms Badenoch herself posted on Social Media just after the unveiling - "sometimes we take for granted just how lucky we are to live in a country where we enjoy peace, democracy and the rule of law. Many others are not so fortunate. Seeing Ian Wolter's unique take on the Burghers of Calais statue, exhibiting the plight of refugee children brings this home."

She then proceeded to vote to remove previous commitments to reunite refugee minors with their families (amending section 17 of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 with the very watered down clause 37).

She makes me sick.

@Choukette

"it wouldn't happen to a white boy" crap

It would though (as other posters have pointed out as well). It's a firearm. Do you think white boys are immune from Country Lines and gangs?

No. I agree

OP is right that ANY minister should be fully briefed, or even have general awareness, of a highly publicised story

The OP though is seemingly allowed to comment on the poor family and he was on "playing" etc but is snippy when posters point out that the actual "incident" has been discussed.

Starting a post doesn't allow you to Police it. If you don't like an alternative viewpoint, OP, you don't need to read the posts

This would have happened to white kids across Liverpool and has happened.

The below image is across Merseyside. This was on the Chester to Liverpool train.

Kids are used in the drug and gun trade. Tje easiest way to move guns about is kids on bikes. That might not be common knowledge to many and they want to go down the racist route, but that the reality of crime today. Where I've lived ten year olds have been used to smash up cars, because they can't be charged.

I'm passed being shocked by the ineptitude of Tory Ministers.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/jul/28/uk-minister-says-family-of-boy-arrested-over-toy-gun-inflamed-tensions

*’Badenoch wrongly claimed the officers had been unarmed during the incident, that the family were using untrue “rhetoric” and that people shouldn’t be using “this sort of language” about the police.

“I think it must be quite a frustrating and sensitive situation to find yourself in. I have been in situations where I have been questioned by the police and at no point did I feel they were going to kill me,”

I don’t think we should be using this sort of language where people feel unarmed police officers try to kill people on the streets. We’re hearing a lot of this rhetoric that is simply not true.

“We should not be trying to inflame tensions in this way by talking about police killing people when this is certainly not true.”*

Then

*’Told by the presenter that the police were armed, she said: “Oh right, I wasn’t aware of that.”

“Well in that case that is something that can be reviewed.”*

The Equalities Minister, accusing someone of ‘Inflam(ing) tensions’ without actually finding out the facts.

PerkingFaintly I am completely in awe of your succinctness.

chrislilleyswig I wasn't intending to police the thread. Apologies if that's how it came across.

Thanks for posting the Guardian record of the interview AuntyPasta.

Really worrying that the Equalities minister has neither been briefed, nor taken the trouble to find out, exactly how the police force operates. How then can she begin to consider the impact of both legitimate and illegitimate action on different sections of British society - which surely is part of what she is being paid to do?

Vinosaurus, the worst of it is that it causes me almost physical pain to criticise her, given the travails that Diane Abbott (and others) have lived through.

But this really doesn't augur well.

It will be interesting to see the body cam image from this incident.

I wonder how they acted when in the house, how did they speak to the occupants and how did they react once it was explained?

Oh - and the Tory Minister didn't listen. The mum said she was worried about being shot - which when you have armed police who are targeting weapons at you is something you would think about as make the wrong move - or have it interpreted as the wrong move - and you could easily get shot. The Tory Minister dismissed the mum's worries as rhetoric - she clearly hadn't heard the interview.

I hope the body cam footage gets released.

I think it must be quite a frustrating and sensitive situation to find yourself in. I have been in situations where I have been questioned by the police and at no point did I feel they were going to kill me

Probably because they weren't armed police with guns targeted at her fully expecting to see a male with a weapon.

Which does raise the chances of something happening

@PerditaProvokesEnmity

There's a full 1000 post thread on this incident already

No, there are not 1000 posts on the Equalities Minister's radio interview this morning.

If you are tired of hearing about it, read something else. But as twelve year old children have played with toy guns in my house you must forgive me for wanting a little more from our elected representatives.

A BB gun is NOT a toy gun!! Even the BBC couldn't get it right and referred to it as a toy gun this morning 🤦‍♂️