British government vows to punish rioters

David Cameron briefing Parliament on the London riot.

British government vows to punish rioters

The British government says individuals involved in the riot that led to the destruction of properties and looting of several shops will be made to face the consequences of their actions.

British Prime Minister, David Cameron said this during an emergency session of the Parliament.

Wrong riot tactics

Mr Cameron told MPs that it had become clear that there had been problems in the initial police response to the disorder.

The Prime Minister pointed out that the police had admitted to him that they got their riot tactics wrong, as he announced a raft of measures to help homeowners and businesses.

“The riots were criminality pure and simple" however there were "far too few police on the streets. Initially the police treated the situation too much as a public order issue - rather than essentially one of crime,” he said.  

He announced a crackdown on facemasks and a review of curfews.

Securing the streets

Chairman of the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee, Keith Vaz, told reporters that members of the committee had voted unanimously to hold an inquiry into the causes of the riots.

The committee will also look at the role of social networking, the police response and police resources.

Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, said the government's first obligation was to show that it could keep the streets safe.

"It's a basic need that we've all got to know that our homes, our shops, our communities can be kept safe at times like this," Mr Clegg said.

He said:"I think the immediate priority is to see through what the police have been doing successfully in the last few days, which is getting on top of the situation, making sure that the streets are safe again, getting people into court and getting them behind bars where appropriate."

According to him, longer-term debates were needed in the coming weeks and months, explaining that it would start in Parliament later.

Measures

On Wednesday, Mr Cameron said the "fightback" was under way and said every action would be taken to restore order, with contingency plans for water cannon to be available at 24 hours' notice.

More than 1,300 arrests have been made since the unrest began on Saturday following the shooting of a young black man by the police.

It is the second time in less than a month that MPs have been recalled for an emergency session - the first was for the phone-hacking scandal at the News of the World newspaper.

BBC/Williams