Forces will take decisions on numbers of armed police officers

National Police Chiefs’ Council Lead for Armed Policing, Deputy Chief Constable Simon Chesterman said:

“We constantly review how we would respond to terrorist incidents so that we are prepared to respond to the latest threats.  Our armed officers are carefully selected volunteers who are among the best trained firearms officers in the world with suitable weaponry and ammunition.  I am confident in their ability to protect the public.

“Following the terrorist attacks in Paris in November 2015, as you would expect we closely examined the incident and our ability to respond to a similar attack in the UK, including our the numbers of armed police officers available.  Individual chief constables and commissioners will take decisions about the number of armed officers required in their force.  Nationally we are working with all police forces and the armed services to build our capacity at a national level to respond to a well organised, multi-sited terrorist attack in the UK.”