A “graduated withdrawal of service plan” shows that if things get to a certain undisclosed point, the Police force will only focus on critical 999 calls.
They will also drop investigations against individuals, depending on the crime and if sickness levels rise too much. Sources said that forces would begin to “withdraw from a wide range of activities,” such as turning a blind eye to types of theft, affray and cannabis dealing.
This procedure follows a colour coded “plan” of sorts, that outlines the specifics of when and why police services will be stopped from prosecuting certain individuals.
The colour coded plan.
A senior Police source said: “If you get to black, the force basically can’t function. You will either have to call in the army or request aid from other police forces. It’s edge-of-the-cliff stuff. I fear we will reach black in certain parts of this country, which is unprecedented.
“It is possible arrests won’t be made. A suspect’s journey through the custody suite involves 12 different people. If a police force is on its knees they won’t be able to make those arrests.”
Despite the scary possibility of a loss of order, many officials believe that as long as the infection rate slows and people do what the Government says, the forces won’t even reach the Black stage.
