A YouGov poll found 41% think London protest rules are ‘too relaxed’

“The question for the police is how they fulfil their responsibilities. I think most people in the country… and there is a poll out today showing that [by] two to one the public think the police are getting this wrong and being too soft on these protesters.”

During an interview on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on 9 November about the police response to ongoing pro-Palestinian protests, Conservative MP Danny Kruger claimed a poll published that day showed by two to one that the public think the police are “getting this wrong” and being “too soft” on protesters.

Mr Kruger confirmed to Full Fact that he was referring to a YouGov survey of 2,080 adults conducted between 7-8 November which asked a series of questions about respondents’ attitudes towards protests and marches in London, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The first question asked: “Generally speaking, do you think the rules on protests and marches in London are…”. Some 41% of respondents responded saying that the rules were “too relaxed, and should be tightened”, while 19% said they were “too strict, and should be relaxed”.

Mr Kruger did not fully explain on the Today programme the results of this YouGov poll question, however, which also found that a further 21% of respondents felt the balance was “about right”, while 19% answered “don’t know”.

It’s therefore true that the poll found those who feel rules surrounding protests and marches in London in general are too relaxed outnumber those who feel they are too strict by two to one. But that doesn’t mean those who feel the rules are too relaxed (or “too soft”) outnumber those who do not feel they are too relaxed by two to one. Overall about the same proportion of respondents (41%) said the rules were too relaxed as those who suggested they are not too relaxed (40%), either because they are too strict or about right. 

It’s also worth noting the YouGov poll question asked about rules on protests and marches in London in general, not recent pro-Palestine marches specifically, though clearly the survey was held in the context of widespread news coverage of these marches. The question also focused on the rules around protests and marches, rather than specifically the policing of them (that is, how the rules are enforced), as Mr Kruger’s comments seemed to imply.

When asked in the same poll specifically about a pro-Palestinian protest planned in London for Armistice Day on 11 November, 50% of respondents said the protest should be banned, while 34% said it should be allowed to go ahead (16% answered “don’t know”).

What about other polls?

A different YouGov poll conducted on 23 October did ask respondents for their views specifically on the policing of protests relating to Israel and Gaza.

That poll of 2,244 adults found that 29% agreed police had “been too cautious, and should have made more arrests”, while 14% agreed the police had “been too harsh, and are wrongly arresting people who have done nothing wrong”.

A further 16% of people agreed the police had “got the balance about right”, with 42% answering “don’t know”.

The use of survey data without appropriate context and caveats can damage public trust in both official information and politicians. MPs should use polls transparently and with all relevant context and caveats when a claim is first made, and quickly rectify oversights when they occur.

Image courtesy of David Woolfall