1. Mr. Gresham Cookeasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will call for reports from chief constables as to how many police have been injured and how much costs has been involved in the provision of police in connection with the demonstrations, disorders and riots at the Springbok Rugby football matches to date.
§ 29. Mr. Hooleyasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the estimated aggregate cost to public funds of providing extra police at all of the Springbok matches so far played.
§ The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Mr. James Callaghan)In England and Wales, 68 policemen have been injured. The total additional cost to public funds of the police duty undertaken so far is £25,000.
Mr. Gresham CookeIs it not disgraceful that these riotous assemblies are costing thousands of pounds to the police, ratepayers, and the clubs, and if groups like the Vietnam Solidarity Campaign and the International Marxist Group are inciting violence, should they not be prosecuted under the Public Order Act, 1936, which makes it an offence to organise a display of force in pusuance of political ends?
§ Mr. CallaghanI would not dream of answering the last part of the question without notice. As for the rest, there is no doubt that demonstrations take up a great deal of police time and money.
§ Mr. HooleyMay I declare an interest in this matter since I was present at the first demonstration at Twickenham and hope to be present at the next one on Saturday. Now that we are reduced to the stage of playing football matches behind barbed wire, playing them in secret places out of public sight, or playing them under massive police guard, would my right hon. Friend not agree that the time has come to put an end to this squalid farce and that the public authorities should cease altogether to have anything to do with this business?
§ Mr. CallaghanI have said before and I say again that it is not for the Government to cancel events of this sort otherwise they may be drawn into cancelling other events. It is a matter of individual judgment as to how far demonstrations help the cause of those whom they are supposed to support. For my part I have no doubt that violent demonstrations and interruptions of games do not support the cause of breaking down racial discrimination in South Africa.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterWhen a deliberate attempt is made to provent the holding of a perfectly lawful sporting function, does it not play into the hands of the disturbers of the peace if the organisers of the game have to pay for the police protection which such an organised attack on the game necessitates?
§ Mr. CallaghanNo, Sir. That would carry us much too far. I certainly would not agree with that.
§ Mr. James JohnsonIs the Home Secretary aware that although great numbers of footballers would march on the pavement in support of peaceful demonstrations, they object when people invade their football pitches?
§ Mr. CallaghanI am aware of that. My own agent in Cardiff last Saturday organised a peaceful demonstration which kept away from the football ground. I am glad that he did this in order to show our disagreement with the policy being pursued in South Africa. I hope that neither the right hon. Gentleman nor anybody else will try to interfere with 1521 that right. It was a peaceful demonstration which did not interfere with the game.
§ Mr. CarlisleWould the right hon. Gentleman not agree that if a group of people, for whatever motive, deliberately decide to disrupt a lawful activity, it is for the police as part of their general duty in maintaining law and order to prevent a breach of the peace?
§ Mr. CallaghanI would not disagree, but that principle extends far beyond rugby football games. It also extends to Association Football games and many other activities where clubs are now required to pay for police protection in the arrangements which they make every Saturday.
28. Mr. Fred Evansasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will call for a report from the chief constables responsible as to how many statements arising from incidents at the Swansea versus Springboks Match on 15th November have been made under section 49 of the Police Act, 1964.
§ Mr. CallaghanOne hundred and ninety-two complaints have been made against police officers on duty in Swansea at the time of the match.
Mr. EvansIs my right hon. Friend aware that the incidents at that game are still causing serious perturbation in South Wales and that it is in the interests of everybody, not least of the police, that he should now consider holding an independent public inquiry into the statements which have been made?
§ Mr. CallaghanAllegations and criminal charges have been made in this matter. Some of them are to be heard on 4th February. It will not be possible to complete the Section 49 inquiries until the court proceedings are ended. I do not believe that any inquiry other than those two is necessary.
§ 30. Mr. Hooleyasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police have been diverted from other duties to perform special duties at each of the Springbok football matches played so far.
§ Mr. CallaghanAs the reply includes a number of figures I will, with permission, circulate them in the OFFICIAL REPORT.
§ Mr. HooleyDoes not my right hon. Friend think that it is a slightly odd sense of priorities to divert a large number of policemen from the valuable normal duties which they perform to protect a football team whose presence in this country is unwelcome and obnoxious to many thousands of citizens?
§ Mr. CallaghanThe cheers were so loud that I did not realise that my hon. Friend had finished his question. I think that these policemen could be better employed on other duties, or even in having a rest day at home, but some of the responsibility for this rests on demonstrators who announce that they intend to interfere with a game. When they do that, the clubs have a right to ensure that they will be protected from such interference.
§ Dr. WinstanleyIs the Home Secretary aware that many of those who do not wish to associate with South Africans or to give encouragement to the South African regime nevertheless think that it would be quite wrong to prohibit any function merely because it required police protection?
§ Mr. CallaghanI have dealt with that.
§ Mr. CarlisleDoes the Home Secretary agree that the work which the police are doing is not—as was suggested by the hon. Member for Sheffield, Heeley (Mr. Hooley)—protection of a football team, but preserving law and order in this country?
§ Mr. CallaghanYes, and I have attempted to make that distinction on many occasions. There would be no need to attempt to preserve law and order if the demonstrators did not attempt to interfere with the game.
§ Following is the information:
§ The numbers of police who would have been on other duties but for the Springboks matches played in England and Wales are as follows:
| Twickenham (5th November, 1969) | … | 540 |
| Leicester (8th November, 1969) | … | 450 |
| Newport (12th November, 1969) | … | 400 |
| Swansea (15th November, 1969) | … | 637 |
| Ebbw Vale (19th November, 1969) | … | 290 |
| Twickenham (22nd November, 1969) | … | 923 |
| Manchester (26th November, 1969) | … | 1,779 |
| Aberavon (10th December,1969) | … | 412 |
| Cardiff (13th December,1969) | … | 570 |
| Aldershot (16th December,1969) | … | 621 |