As Scotland Yard launch a pre-emptive strike against anarchists, a discreet government unit is working behind the scenes to combat dangerous stalkers who have already targeted Prince William and Kate Middleton. Max Pemberton and Neil Tweedie report.
Sir Paul Stephenson must be looking forward to next Saturday. Only then will the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police be able to breathe easily. His is the most onerous of tasks: to ensure that no one, be they terrorist, anarchist or psychotic, succeeds in ruining the royal wedding.
Sir Paul, who has made an early return from sick leave to oversee Friday’s security operation, will mobilise 5,000 police officers at an estimated cost of £20 million. In the background is Britain’s intelligence apparatus, monitoring internet and telephone traffic for signs of a plot, and a rapid-response team from the Special Forces.
They face a spectrum of threats, from Islamist and Irish terrorism to anti-capitalist protesters. The Met has warned it will take pre-emptive action to counter them, including warnings to specific individuals and arrests. Half a million or more people are expected in central London for the marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton, and while police are confident that they can maintain security along the route to and from Westminster Abbey, there is plenty of scope for trouble elsewhere in the capital and in other parts of the country.
Sir Paul, who has made an early return from sick leave to oversee Friday’s security operation, will mobilise 5,000 police officers at an estimated cost of £20 million. In the background is Britain’s intelligence apparatus, monitoring internet and telephone traffic for signs of a plot, and a rapid-response team from the Special Forces.
They face a spectrum of threats, from Islamist and Irish terrorism to anti-capitalist protesters. The Met has warned it will take pre-emptive action to counter them, including warnings to specific individuals and arrests. Half a million or more people are expected in central London for the marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton, and while police are confident that they can maintain security along the route to and from Westminster Abbey, there is plenty of scope for trouble elsewhere in the capital and in other parts of the country.