Police chief behind Maccabi Tel Aviv ban clings to job despite home secretary wanting him to quit

"The police chief who used exaggerated and untrue intelligence to justify a ban on Israeli football fans was clinging on to his job on Wednesday despite the home secretary demanding he resign. Craig Guildford, who leads West Midlands police, is determined to stay in his post for now, the Guardian has learned, despite a war of words that culminated in Shabana Mahmood declaring she had lost confidence in him."

"The report by Sir Andy Cooke, the chief inspector of constabulary, uncovered a string of errors in how the West Midlands force gathered intelligence on the risks of Maccabi fans coming to Birmingham. The threat was greatly exaggerated, leaving a safety committee that relied on the police intelligence with little or no option but to ban them, the report said."

A report by Sir Andy Cooke found multiple errors in how West Midlands police gathered and presented intelligence about Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters, resulting in a greatly exaggerated threat assessment. A safety committee that relied on that intelligence effectively had little option but to ban the supporters from an Aston Villa match. The force made misleading statements through confirmation bias and carelessness rather than deliberate distortion or antisemitism. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood declared she had lost confidence in Chief Constable Craig Guildford and demanded his resignation, but said she lacked the legal power to remove him and sought law changes.

Read at www.theguardian.com