March 10, 2006: World Cup Policing and Security Plans

The most comprehensive range of measures ever put in place to help prevent significant football disorder among England fans at this year’s World Cup, were unveiled today by Home Secretary Charles Clarke . The plans, the result of two years' extensive preparations with the host nation Germany, include:

• 44 uniformed British police officers deployed around Germany to work in close cooperation with the Federal and State police;
• A small team of German police officers deployed at selected airports and ports to work with British police monitoring the departure of England fans;
• British police officers deployed in transit countries surrounding Germany to ensure continuity of police information and support;
• A team of 4 British prosecutors working with the British police and with German police and prosecutors to build packages of evidence that can be used in English courts.

The plans will also make maximum use of the tough banning order legislation introduced after Euro 2000 and associated police powers to prevent any known troublemakers from leaving England during the tournament. Preventing the export of any English football problems underpins the strategy and the preparations. That legislation ensures that over 3,200 known troublemakers subject to banning orders will not be in Germany this June. Charles Clarke said:

"I have this week formally agreed key areas of cooperation with my German counterpart, including the role of British uniformed police officers, as part of a package of measures to provide maximum support to the host nation. These are unprecedented initiatives that reflect the Government's commitment to ensuring that this year’s World Cup is a positive experience for the anticipated 100,000 travelling England fans and for the host nation. The measures, which worked extremely well at the World Cup in Japan in 2002 and more recently at Euro 2004 in Portugal, have been expanded, refined and adapted for the World Cup 2006. Above all, self-policing is the best policing. It is up to the fans to show that the spectre of English hooliganism has been removed once and for all.."

Under German law, uniformed British police officers working with Federal police at airports and on the transport system will have the same powers as German police officers. They will, in effect, be auxiliary German police officers. However, the uniformed British police officers working in venue cities (with the State police) will not have powers.

CPS lead on football issues, CPP Nick Hawkins, said:

"The CPS will work closely with police and German prosecutors to collect good quality evidence to build good quality cases. We will use evidence collected in Germany to make sure any English fans who cause trouble will receive a football banning order when they return home. I am very impressed with all the hard work England fans are putting in to set a party tone for the tournament and that itself is the biggest deterrent to any trouble. But we can help them set that tone by promising to robustly deal with any few individuals who may set out to spoil that party."