Unlike in the United States, in the U.K., with the exception of Northern Ireland, fewer than one in 20 police officers in England and Wales carry a gun. And, unlike in the United States, “every time a British police officer shoots and injures or kills someone, it is automatically referred to a separate watchdog called the Independent Police Complaints Commission, or IPCC.”
The BBC explains that unarming of police officers originated in the 19th century with the establishment of the Metropolitan Police under the Metropolitan Police Act of 1829. The act disbanded a previously disorganized system of parish constables and watchmen.
The idea of community policing without guns under the previous system’s parish constables remained. Police were allowed to use guns in the early 20th century, but only by trained officers who would be employed in exceptionally dangerous situations.
Today in the United States we live under a system where anyone who can qualify to purchase a gun is allowed to own a gun. To defend themselves against this proliferation of guns, law enforcement systems have created “police states” and the appearance of military occupations over much of the country.
"In a free and democratic society, there is going to be a balance between democracy, freedom, and openness, and a police state -- and none of us want to live in a police state," said Brian Dillon, former head of the Met's firearms command who now runs the counterterrorism consultancy Rubicon Resilience.
NBC reports:
“The terrorism-linked fire aboard a Tube train, the London Bridge attack and a similar one in March near the heart of Britain's democracy may have been shocking, but authorities have known for years that such incidents were coming.
“Last year -- when Brits watched terrorists strike France, Germany, and Belgium -- London's police chief warned it was a case of ‘when, not if’ the U.K. joined that list.
“And yet more than 90 percent of the capital's police officers carry out their daily duties without a gun. Most rely on other tools to keep their city safe: canisters of mace, handcuffs, batons and occasionally stun-guns.
“This is no accident.
“The Metropolitan Police, which covers most of London, was founded in 1829 on the principle of ‘policing by consent’ rather than by force.
“Giving everyday police officers guns sends the wrong message to communities, so this thinking goes, and can actually cause more problems than it solves.
“Although there are higher numbers of armed police guarding Parliament, the attacker who rushed its gates in March was shot dead by a relatively rare member of the country's security forces -- one who had been trained to use a firearm.
“Some of these gun-wielding officers patrol the city in pairs, others are members of crack response teams -- units dressed in body-armor, helmets and carrying long rifles -- who are called to the scene of violent incidents like these.
“In most instances, they don't use their weapons.”
Here’s the rest of the story:
By Alexander Smith
