A Tory minister today said ‘I need another coffee’ after struggling with statistics from her own department in a live radio interview.
Safeguarding minister Rachel Maclean admitted she didn’t have a briefing paper with her about changes to stop-and-search powers, announced today by her Home Office boss Priti Patel.
Ms Patel has effectively undone stop-and-search limitations which Theresa May put in place as Home Secretary in 2014.
A ‘section 60’ authorisation for stop-and-search under the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act can now remain in place for 24 hours, up from 15.
And it can be extended to a maximum of 48 hours, up from 39 before.
Section 60 orders also no longer need to be communicated to the public in advance.
Lower-ranking officers - at or above the rank of Inspector - will be able to authorise them initially.
And the threshold of believing serious violence “will” occur is lowered to “may” occur.
The Government's own statistics shows black individuals were searched at a rate 7.0 times higher than that of those from a White ethnic group in the year ending March 2021.
Ms Maclean, asked how long a Section 60 can be put in place for as part of the move, told LBC: "I think the time is 12 hours, but it has to be renewed on a proportionate basis when the intelligence is reviewed."
Told it was not 12 hours, but 24 under the changes, she replied: "Oh, forgive me, 24 hours. I need another coffee."
The safeguarding minister was also told it was 15 hours previously, not 12 as she had stated.
She was then asked how long an extension could be sought if approved by a superintendent, to which Ms Maclean said: "So, there is another time period, which I'm sure you have in front of (you), which I haven't."
Told by presenter Nick Ferrari that he did not think she knew the answer following a back-and-forth exchange, Ms Maclean responded: "No, I'm being quite upfront with you.
"I haven't got the paper in front of me, forgive me."
Asked whether she thought she should know such information given she works in the Home Office, the Redditch MP said: "I do know."
But when asked to share the answer with listeners, she replied: "Look, you're doing a very good job of demonstrating that I don't have the papers in front of me now."
Ms Maclean went on to be told that the answer for how long a superintendent could authorise a Section 60 to be in place was 48 hours, up from 39 hours.
The Home Secretary announced the move in letter to police forces today.
Section 60 powers give officers the right to search people without reasonable grounds in an area when they expect serious violence, and to look for weapons before they can be used, or those used in a recent attack.
Ms Patel said it was part of the Government's efforts to tackle violent crime.
Labour's shadow policing minister Sarah Jones said: "Stop and search is an important police tool for tackling knife crime but it must always be based on evidence and used proportionately."
