But do they object enough to transfer back to response policing? No, I didn't think so! As my old Superintendent used to say "Sup it Up". Being an AFO is still a "Gucci" - well looked after role and far nore attractive than the Cannon Fodder of the team grind!

They are not sleepwalking into it, they are walking into it with eyes wide open. One has only to look at the media on national television over recent times to see this, but look on the web channels such as Facebook to see many, many incidents of police officers and even traffic wardens being savagely attacked in certain high 'diversity' city areas across the country, with said officers being severely beaten and kicked on the ground or having to beat a hasty retreat. The national news bulletins will not show this terrible behaviour which is going to result in the deaths of police officers, just carrying out their basic day to day duties on said local streets, until we reach the stage that all officers will have to be armed to preserve their lives and be able to continue to support their families. Do not give me bilge about policing by consent, that applied to John Bull's Ye Olde England when the British police were created early 1800's. That country no longer exists (except in isolated rural areas) just take a realistic look at what is going on today, for crying out loud!

UK policing will be predominantly armed in the next ten years. The influx of violent OCG's from nation states where firearms are readily available and where life is cheap will ensure that routine arming is necessary. Home grown OCGs will need to be heavily armed to compete with the competition. The usage of firearms in London, Birmingham, Manchester and Merseyside is a window into what's to come nationwide.

I cannot see a time were police will be predominantly armed in the UK. It is not that I doubt the circumstances may eventually come that this will become a necessity. But put simply,that officers look at what the weight of carrying a firearm and discharging it means.They will walk away. It is bad enough that the second guessers,hindsight merchants and armchair warriors such as IOPC and HMIC and the MSM driven band wagon have become squeamish at officers even applying basic non lethal force in dealing with the non compliant customer base. Sign out a firearm at the start of a shift....? People wont do it and why on earth would they.

I think those officers already in firearms units will as anon says, be reluctant to transfer back to response policing. However, the issue is the rapidly reducing pool of those willing to apply because of the Kaba case. My son is a younger n service officer and was ready and really keen to apply for firearms. This has put him and several other colleagues of his off applying, and at the most recent round of recruiting they all decided not to apply. Whilst aware of the horrendous stress and worry likely if involved in a shooting, it is the fact that they are unlikely to be supported and in reality hounded and treated like a criminal that tipped their thinking. Apparently they didn’t even get enough applications to fill existing and predicted vacancies which is horrendous given the assessment process and also attrition from the course. This is a rolling crises in the making

No reason why the UK should be one of the few predominantly unarmed police services - the past is over, Dixon got shot dead, the future 10-20 years will be a shake up and a wake up call to a much greater armed presence and the need to recruit the appropriate workforce. The days of dancing the macarena will be a distant memory of when things were going wrong...The UK can no longer look down their hooters at overseas police forces as being inferior as we now have much to learn in some aspects; training, t+c, status/credibility, fitness, professionalisation and so on and on...

If this happens, then the anti police media and politicians will of course absolve themselves of any responsibility after spending so much time and public coverage on assuming an officer’s guilt.

Wouldn't carry a firearm in this country under any circumstances. No protection for officers. I have given up doing stop and search too.