The lead lawyer in the public inquiry into undercover policing has warned the next government and law enforcement to “heed the lessons” from past use of police spies.
David Barr KC said the inquiry is not purely a historical exercise and that it is important for those in charge of undercover policing tactics to learn lessons from the past.
A report by the current government’s adviser on political violence Lord Walney advised sweeping crackdowns on protests, and said police should have “extensive intelligence” about extreme political protest groups.
The document, published in May, said there should be a review of whether “undercover surveillance is being used appropriately in the context of public order and aggravated activism”.
The second stage of the Undercover Policing Inquiry (UCPI) began on Monday, with this batch of hearings looking at the since disbanded secret Metropolitan Police unit the Special Demonstration Squad (SDS) between 1983 and 1992.
In February last year a report following the first hearings, which looked at the SDS between 1968 and 1982, found that the squad should have been shut down in the first years of its existence.
It said that, of the groups spied upon during that period, only three were legitimate targets.
Making his opening statement on Monday, counsel to the inquiry Mr Barr said: “Lest anyone consider this a purely historical exercise, it is important to learn lessons from the past.
“The question of undercover surveillance of activists appears to be back on the agenda in the light of Lord Walney’s recent report entitled Protecting our Democracy from Coercion.
“Anyone considering this issue would be well advised to heed the lessons that emerged from (chairman Sir John Mitting’s) interim report and the evidence that we continue to publish.”
