A number of editors, journalists, and lawyers have written to the Home Secretary calling on the Government to think again about proposed plans to grant anonymity to firearms officers in England and Wales who face criminal charges.

The proposal – part of the Crime and Policing Bill that returned to the House of Lords for its Second Reading last week – would introduce a presumption of anonymity in the Magistrates’ and Crown Courts for firearms officers who are defendants in cases where they have discharged their firearms in the line of duty and in the process of carrying out their official functions.

Those who have signed the letter to the Home Secretary opposing this change argue that it would “ride roughshod over the principles of open justice which underpin public confidence in our policing and judicial system”, adding that “the ability of media to report on criminal proceedings involving firearms officers would be severely impeded, leaving a vacuum which would be filled by misinformation and rumour”.

The signatories – who include the Society of Editors, News Media Association, and Media Lawyers Association – also point to the fact that judges already have the power to grant anonymity to defendants in appropriate cases and argue that “there is no need for an unprecedented blanket presumption of anonymity in law” which could, they fear, “open the door to secrecy in other areas of police disciplinary proceedings”.

Responding to the letter, a Government spokesperson has been quoted as saying that “the work of armed police officers is unique and dangerous…New measures will help protect firearms officers from harm, while ensuring court proceedings remain public and the press can report on them. As is appropriate, the identity of those convicted of a crime will be revealed once court proceedings have concluded”.

The Crime and Policing Bill will begin Committee Stage in the House of Lords in due course. For more information, click here.