Policing Politics

Blogger Michael Abberton has been visited in his Cambridge home by two police officers. The officers asked him to take down tweets he posted in his attempt to expose UKIP policies. They then informed him that he had not broken any law before advising him not to tweet about his visit. Bizarre.

Not only does this little encounter show a willingness of the police force to get involved in party-political matters, it also shows the extent to which the police are prepared to go. Namely, observing social media, tracking down individuals and visiting them in their homes on a Saturday afternoon. Note in Michael Abberton’s case no law had been broken and no offensive remarks had been made. This doesn’t bode well for a theoretically independent police force. Nor does it help Farage distance himself from the fascist image he so utterly contests.