The home secretary has said she has lost confidence in the West Midlands chief constable after a “damning” report found intelligence used to justify a ban on fans of an Israeli football team from a game was “exaggerated or simply untrue”.
The inquiry, which was ordered by Shabana Mahmood and carried out by the policing inspectorate, found the force made a series of errors in how it gathered and handled intelligence.
Mahmood said the force had had a “failure of leadership” that “harmed the reputation and eroded public confidence in West Midlands police and policing more broadly”.
She told MPs one error was blamed on an “AI hallucination”.
Mahmood said law changes under the Conservatives meant she lacked the power to dismiss a chief constable as only the local police and crime commissioner could do so. She said she would seek to restore to the home secretary the power to sack chief constables in new legislation.
Sir Andy Cooke, the chief inspector of constabulary, found the force had failed to sufficiently engage with the Jewish community before the ban decision.
Mahmood said: “Faced by a game of such importance, the chief constable of the force, Craig Guildford, should have ensured more professional and thorough work was done. As Sir Andy himself says: the ‘shortcomings’ detailed in his report are, and I quote: ‘Symptomatic of a force not applying the necessary strategic oversight and not paying enough attention to important matters of detail, including at the most senior levels.’
“The ultimate responsibility for the force’s failure to discharge its duties on a matter of such national importance rests with the chief constable, and it is for that reason that I must declare today that the chief constable of West Midlands police no longer has my confidence.”
She said it was the first time in two decades a home secretary had declared no confidence in a police leader.
The report did not find the force was motivated by antisemitism, as some had alleged. It blamed confirmation bias, saying the force stopped being open-minded about the conclusion it should reach, interpreting new information as confirmation of its existing beliefs or theories.
Mahmood said of Cooke’s findings: “He shows that the police overstated the threat posed by the Maccabi Tel Aviv fans, while understating the risk that was posed to the Israeli fans if they travelled to the area.
“Misleading communications also extend to the words of the chief constable himself at his appearance in front of the home affairs select committee, when he claimed that AI tools were not used to prepare intelligence reports, a claim since refuted by one of his own officers, who blames incorrect evidence on an ‘AI hallucination’.”
The West Midlands police case is that they were willing to have Maccabi Tel Aviv fans attend the game against Aston Villa in November 2025 at Villa Park until they spoke to Dutch police about their experience when the Israeli side played in Amsterdam in November 2024. The force said it was told by Dutch police that Maccabi fans were perpetrators of the violence, not victims. Dutch police and other groups strongly dispute this.
The conclusions reached by West Midlands police went in a report the force gave to a local safety advisory group before the game in Birmingham, which decided on the ban.
As part of its inquiry, HM Inspectorate of Constabulary spoke to Dutch police, who said several key claims that West Midlands police relied on clashed with its experience of policing Maccabi fans during the match in Amsterdam in November 2024, which was marred by violence.
Dutch police disputed a claim that Maccabi fans had at one point thrown people into a river. In fact, it was a Maccabi fan who ended up in the water.
Mahmood said: “The West Midlands police engagement with the Dutch police is one of the most disquieting elements of Sir Andy’s report. The summary, provided as evidence to the safety advisory group ahead of their crucial meeting on 24 October was inaccurate.
“Claims, including the number of police officers deployed, links between fans and the Israeli Defense Forces, the targeting of Muslim communities, the mass tearing down of Palestinian flags [in Amsterdam], attacks on police officers, and on taxi drivers were all either exaggerated or simply untrue.
“In his report, Sir Andy is clear that the validation of intelligence conducted by the force was a cause of ‘significant concern’, that record-keeping within the force was ‘poor’.”
The only person who can oust Guildford is Simon Foster, the police and crime commissioner for the West Midlands. He has previously praised Guildford, chief constable since 2022, for improving the force’s performance and service to the public.
Cooke said: “My preliminary review found that confirmation bias influenced the way West Midlands police reached and communicated its recommendation to reduce the ticket allocation for away fans to zero.
“I have several other concerns including, but not limited to, inaccurate information in written communication, a failure to engage with the local Jewish community early enough, and poor record-keeping and retention of important information.”
