'I thought the King's phone call was a wind-up'

A police chief has revealed he once rejected a call from King Charles' private secretary during a violent disorder because he thought it was a practical joke.

Leicestershire's Chief Constable, Rob Nixon, was speaking to the BBC about his 32-year policing career ahead of his retirement next week.

Mr Nixon has also called for a ban on anonymous social media accounts, to stop violence being provoked online.

He says officers' workloads have become "unacceptable" and the police service needs to "clear out bureaucracy".

Mr Nixon's first posting, as a constable in Market Harborough, was the beginning of what he describes as a "fantastically challenging, but wonderful" career.

His highlights include leading the force's response to several large-scale public order incidents - including the 2011 riots, and violence between English Defence League supporters and counter-demonstrators in 2010 and 2012.

Then in September 2022, when Mr Nixon was temporary chief constable, violence erupted between hundreds of mainly Hindu and Muslim young men.

Mr Nixon remembers being pelted with glass bottles as he joined officers on the front-line, then receiving an unexpected request as the force struggled to restore order.

"I get a call saying we have the Royal household on the phone and the King would like a briefing. I thought it was a wind-up. I genuinely thought it was a wind-up.

"I said 'can you take the number and I'll call them back'. Sure enough, I called back and it was the fact that King Charles wanted a personal briefing. That is hugely unusual."

Mr Nixon flew to Scotland with local community leaders to speak to the King face-to-face.

"I found myself facilitating a discussion amongst some community leaders from Leicester and King Charles on his first public appearance, so it was very strange."

Following that 2022 disorder, Mr Nixon spoke about his concerns over the way tensions were stoked up online. Now he wants social media companies to take firm action.

"I don't think anybody should be allowed to have a social media account that is anonymous. You've got people hiding behind anonymity and sending very divisive messages.

"Why would we provide a service that allows people to set themselves up with false aliases that troll people in a really discriminative way? We've got to avoid social media being weaponised.

"They have a responsibility to ensure people are using their platforms in a way that ensures freedom of speech, but does not enable mass mobilisation of people with hatred that leads to disorder."

Mr Nixon expects police budgets to come under increasing pressure as new military priorities force the government to take difficult spending decisions.

He says that requires a fresh look at the "core mission" of policing requirements, and a "clear out" of bureaucracy.

"A time of real fiscal challenge might be a good opportunity to strip some of that back. You've got to become more efficient".

"If you're going to have a smaller workforce, and the workload is going to increase and become more complex, you've got to use technology to try to simplify some of that."

He says the Leicestershire force is using more artificial intelligence and piloting an app called GoodSAM that helps the police speak to victims and witnesses and create statements.

Mr Nixon hopes he leaves a legacy of closer connections with local communities, and says one of the biggest changes during his career has been a loss of respect.

"Back in 1993, you would get asked 'officer, do you have time for a cup of tea?'".

"Now you're more likely to be faced with someone getting a mobile phone out and trying to record you, or trip you up, and put something onto social media.

"I think there is less tolerance towards each other, less tolerance towards official bodies and authorities and some of that gets played out in policing."

"99% of the people in this organisation come to work to do a good job. They're not getting paid enough, mostly.

"They're putting up with a disproportionate level of abuse and carrying workloads that are unacceptable.

"We shouldn't lose sight of the fact that our police officers are doing remarkable things every single day.

"They are running towards danger when other people are running away."

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