Operation Temperer is a British government plan to deploy

troops A troop is a military sub-subunit, originally a small formation of cavalry, subordinate to a squadron. In many armies a troop is the equivalent element to the infantry section or platoon. Exceptions are the US Cavalry and the King's Troop Ro ...

to support and free up police officers in key locations following a major terrorist attack or major public disorder. It was put into effect for the first time on 22 May 2017 following the bombing of an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena and for a second time following the

Parsons Green bombing On 15 September 2017, at around 08:20 BST (07:20 UTC), an explosion occurred on a District line train at Parsons Green Underground station, in London, England. Thirty people were treated in hospital or an urgent care centre, mostly for burn ...

. HQ Standing Joint Commander (UK) is militarily responsible for directing the deployment, if ordered.

Background

The plan provides for up to 5,100 service personnel from all 3 services to be deployed to "augment armed police officers engaged in protective security duties" at key sites in the United Kingdom. In practice,

and

military police Military police (MP) are law enforcement agencies connected with, or part of, the military of a state. In wartime operations, the military police may support the main fighting force with force protection, convoy security, screening, rear recon ...

would replace some police officers particularly from the

Metropolitan Police The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...

Ministry of Defence Police The Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) is a civilian special police force which is part of the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence. The MDP's primary responsibilities are to provide armed security and counter terrorism services to designated hig ...

and the

Civil Nuclear Constabulary The Civil Nuclear Constabulary (CNC) (Welsh: ''Heddlu Sifil Niwclear'') is a special police force responsible for providing law enforcement and security at any relevant nuclear site and for security of nuclear materials in transit within the Unit ...

guarding sites of national interest or critical national infrastructure such as Nuclear power stations, military garrisons, Buckingham Palace and Parliament so they can be deployed on either armed or unarmed frontline operational duties. According to government sources cited by the ''Daily Telegraph'', it would only be triggered following a

COBR The Cabinet Office Briefing Rooms (COBR) are meeting rooms in the Cabinet Office in London. These rooms are used for committees which co-ordinate the actions of government bodies in response to national or regional crises, or during overseas e ...

meeting. The plan was put in place following the

January 2015 Île-de-France attacks From 7 to 9 January 2015, terrorist attacks occurred across the Île-de-France region, particularly in Paris. Three attackers killed a total of 17 in four shooting attacks, and police then killed the three assailants. The attacks also wounded 22 ...

in France. It was intended to be kept secret, but was accidentally disclosed in July 2015 after being inadvertently uploaded to the website of the

National Police Chiefs' Council The National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) is a national coordination body for law enforcement in the United Kingdom and the representative body for British police chief officers. Established on 1 April 2015, it replaced the former Association o ...

. It was said to have been contentious with the Army leadership, due to concerns about it causing overstretch, training given to troops, morale problems and difficulties with deciding when to end the operation. The British armed forces have previously deployed to support the police, most notably during

the Troubles The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an "i ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

when 21,000 troops were deployed to assist the

Royal Ulster Constabulary The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) was the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001. It was founded on 1 June 1922 as a successor to the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC)Richard Doherty, ''The Thin Green Line – The History of the Royal ...

Operation Banner Operation Banner was the operational name for the British Armed Forces' operation in Northern Ireland from 1969 to 2007, as part of the Troubles. It was the longest continuous deployment in British military history. The British Army was initial ...

. In 2003,

Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...

's government temporarily deployed 450 troops to

Heathrow Airport Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others be ...

and other London locations during a period of heightened terrorist threat. Plans to support the police and increase the numbers of officers deployed on the streets began after the

2011 England riots The 2011 England riots, more widely known as the London riots, were a series of riots between 6 and 11 August 2011. Thousands of people rioted in cities and towns across England, which saw looting, arson, as well as mass deployment of police ...

. Other European countries have also deployed troops to guard against terrorist threats in cities; France has deployed over 10,000 troops under Operation Sentinelle since the January 2015 attacks in the Paris region, and Italy also deployed 4,800 troops in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

and other cities in February 2015.

Activation

Manchester Arena bombing

The plan was activated for the first time on 23 May 2017 following the

Manchester Arena bombing On 22 May 2017, an Islamist extremist suicide bomber detonated a shrapnel-laden homemade bomb as people were leaving the Manchester Arena following a concert by American pop singer Ariana Grande. Twenty-three people were killed, including ...

. Prime Minister

Theresa May Theresa Mary May, Lady May (; née Brasier; born 1 October 1956) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served in David Cameron's cab ...

announced that the police had asked for military support and the request had been approved by Sir Michael Fallon, the

Secretary of State for Defence The secretary of state for defence, also referred to as the defence secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the business of the Ministry of Defence. The incumbent is a membe ...

. The operation remained in force until the end of the bank holiday weekend, despite the threat level being reduced from critical to severe on 27 May. The website ''Warfare.Today'' identified the military deployment as involving units from the Foot Guards, the 2nd Battalion, The Parachute Regiment (2 PARA) and the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

, with additional assistance expected from the

Royal Marines The Corps of Royal Marines (RM), also known as the Royal Marines Commandos, are the UK's special operations capable commando force, amphibious light infantry and also one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy. The Corps of Royal Marine ...

the

RAF Regiment The Royal Air Force Regiment (RAF Regiment) is part of the Royal Air Force and functions as a specialist corps. Founded by royal warrant in 1942, the Corps carries out soldiering tasks relating to the delivery of air power. Examples of such ta ...

and the

RAF Police The Royal Air Force Police (RAFP) is the service police branch of the Royal Air Force, headed by the provost marshal of the Royal Air Force. Its headquarters are at RAF Honington and it deploys throughout the world to support RAF and UK defence ...

Parsons Green bombing

The operation was activated again on 15 September 2017 when the threat level was raised to critical in the aftermath of the

, with military personnel replacing police officers on armed guarding duties.

Coronavirus Pandemic

On the 22nd September 2020, the Prime Minister stated to Parliament that he would actively consider the use of the military under Operation Temperer to assist police forces to enforce Coronavirus restrictions. Military personnel would not be enforcing restrictions themselves, but would instead take over guard duties from the police at high-profile sites, to reduce the overall pressure on policing resources.

References