Police use of force rises over pandemic in Greater Manchester

Home Office data shows the number of incidents in which Greater Manchester Police used force rose 329 per cent to 33,567 in the year to March, from 7,818 in 2019-2020.

Of the incidents last year, 1,874 resulted in the subject being injured.

Across England and Wales, 608,000 use of force incidents were recorded in 2021-22, up from 492,000 in 2019-20.

Gavin Hales, senior associate fellow at the Police Foundation, said last year involved “something of a return to normal crime levels” after a drop in crime during lockdowns.

He added the rise could in part be due to the recruitment of new officers and improved recording of incidents.

Across the country, 79 per cent of incidents involved restraining the subject – such as handcuffing or forcing them to the ground – with restraint tactics used 42,177 times in Greater Manchester.

Police can use multiple tactics in one incident, so this figure may be higher than the total number of incidents where restraint was used.

Men aged 18 to 34 were the most likely to be subject to police force nationally, with 14,332 incidents (43 per cent) in Greater Manchester.

Across England and Wales, black people were 3.5 times more likely to be subject to use of force tactics.

Emmanuelle Andrews, policy and campaigns manager at civil rights campaign group Liberty, said: “We all want to feel safe in our communities, but the Home Office report shows that this is often not true for black people.”

Nationally, black men aged 18 to 34 account for seven per cent of all use of force incidents, despite comprising just 0.5 per cent of the population.

Liberty has cautioned against calls to extend police powers.

“We must have meaningful discussions about how we can better keep communities safe, and prioritise solutions which have human rights and social justice at their heart,” Ms Andrews added.

A Home Office spokesman said sometimes force can be a "vital tool" in policing.

“We are clear that nobody should experience force because of their race,” he added.

“The causes of racial disparities in the criminal justice system are complex and reflect broader social inequalities the UK Government is committed to tackling.”