At a special meeting focusing on how the emergency services plan to deliver ‘business as usual’ during the Games, the Assembly’s Health and Public Services Committee questioned representatives from London’s health and emergency services about their contingency planning for this coming summer.
Cautioning that no two host cities were the same, Metropolitan Police Service assistant commissioner Chris Allison pointed out that overall levels of crime had actually fallen during the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games and the 2000 Sydney Summer Games.
Commenting on the level of police readiness, Allison – who’s the national Olympic security co-ordinator for the 2012 Games – described London as being ‘in a good place, but not complacent’.
Assembly members were questioning Allison alongside representatives from the British Transport Police, the London Ambulance Service, the London Fire Brigade, NHS London and the Greater London Authority as part of a follow-up to its published report entitled Business as Usual?
All of the guests expressed confidence in the planning and preparation in place to ensure that Londoners’ access to health and emergency services will not be adversely affected by the Games.
Scale of planning and preparation
Assembly members heard how the London Ambulance Service and NHS London plan to handle possible congestion in central London as well as the lessons learned from the August 2011 riots.
Victoria Borwick AM, chairman of the Health and Public Services Committee, said: “Whatever happens on the track at the Olympic Stadium, or in the pool at the Aquatics Centre, Londoners need to know that their health and emergency services should be available just as they are any other day of the year.”
Borwick continued: “That’s why it’s reassuring to see the sheer scale of planning and preparation the emergency services have put into managing the impact of the Games and how they have taken on board lessons from previous host cities.”
In conclusion, the chairman added: “There may still be some question marks over ensuring staff and supplies getto where they are needed during Games time, but overall the Committee was reassured by how the emergency services have worked together to plan for what will surely be a fantastic summer for London.”
The Committee also commended the emergency services’ commitment to learning lessons from the Games to improve the handling of major sporting events in the UK and for the benefit of future host cities.
Watch a webcast of the meeting
Met’s Torch security team demonstrates tactics
The Met’s Torch Security Team demonstrated some of the tactics it will use to protect the Olympic Flame in front of crime and security James Brockenshire at a training session held late last week.
The team, which is drawn entirely from Metropolitan Police Service officers, simulated the convoy of vehicles and the torch bearer which millions of spectators will see across the UK at its training session held at the Peel Centre in Hendon.
Officers demonstrated to the minister and the media how they would intervene if someone tried to get to the torch bearer or stage a protest and outlined some of the tactical options they will use depending on where they are running.
Commander Bob Broadhurst, who will be London’s Gold Commander for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, said: “We will be as tough and robust as we need to be. Officers will use their powers under the law to protect the individual carrying the torch. Key to the policing plan which they will help to deliver will be ensuring that the torch and the torchbearer takes centre stage during its journey through the UK.”
Five core protection teams totalling 36 officers have been selected. As well as providing security and protection to the Olympic Flame and the torchbearers, these officers will also be on rotation for support and reconnaissance work while others are on rest days.
During the torch relay they will travel on a variety of modes of transport, depending on how the Olympic Flame is being transported.
In addition to these core protection teams, a number of other Met officers will be part of the wider team delivering the operation. This includes planners, who are liaising with police forces around the country who will deliver the local policing operations, motorcycle officers to help with the safe passage of the torch on the road and officers who will command and control the operation.
In total, approximately 70 officers make up the full Torch Security Team, with up to 52 officers travelling with the Olympic Torch Relay at any one time.
