NPCC response to the Police Federation's routine arming survey 2017

Deputy Chief Constable Simon Chesterman said: "Since the attacks in Paris, we have been uplifting our armed policing capabilities.  There are now 640 more armed officers than this time last year and we are significantly increasing the numbers of highly trained Counter Terrorist Specialist Firearms Officers across the UK.

"We are now undertaking a further review of the level of armed policing in light of the significant shift in the terror threat to the UK. Chiefs remain committed to our model of policing with the principle of minimal use of force and a routinely unarmed service at its core. At the same time, they want to be assured we can end a terror attack quickly and protect as many people as possible.

"The review considers the risk to the public and our officers who are first on the scene.  Chiefs will consider the initial findings of this review in October, along with the results of the Police Federation’s survey on their members’ views.”