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| Version 21 | Version 22 |
|---|---|
| Police chief quits over blunder | Police chief quits over blunder |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| Britain's top counter-terrorism officer has quit after admitting he could have jeopardised an operation which aimed to thwart a possible al-Qaeda terror plot. | Britain's top counter-terrorism officer has quit after admitting he could have jeopardised an operation which aimed to thwart a possible al-Qaeda terror plot. |
| Assistant Commissioner Bob Quick resigned after he accidently revealed a a secret document to photographers. | Assistant Commissioner Bob Quick resigned after he accidently revealed a a secret document to photographers. |
| Police were forced to bring their operation forward and arrested 12 men - 11 of whom are Pakistanis. | |
| Gordon Brown said Mr Quick had said sorry for what went wrong and that he had thanked him for his long service. | |
| The prime minister also said Pakistan's government "had to do more" to root out the terrorist elements in its country. | |
| 'Lives at risk' | 'Lives at risk' |
| Sources say the planned attack was to be "very soon" and "very, very big". | |
| BBC home affairs correspondent Daniel Sandford said sources close to the investigation had revealed the counter-terror operation had been launched in response to a possible terrorist plot that had reached its final stages of planning. | BBC home affairs correspondent Daniel Sandford said sources close to the investigation had revealed the counter-terror operation had been launched in response to a possible terrorist plot that had reached its final stages of planning. |
| Brown:' Increasingly we have seen terrorist links with Britain and Pakistan' | |
| Although no specific target was mentioned in intelligence, police moved quickly because of concerns over the scale of the attack and the fact that it was going to happen soon, he said. | Although no specific target was mentioned in intelligence, police moved quickly because of concerns over the scale of the attack and the fact that it was going to happen soon, he said. |
| Security expert Peter Taylor told the BBC the attack was possibly to be made using an improvised explosive device. | Security expert Peter Taylor told the BBC the attack was possibly to be made using an improvised explosive device. |
| The operation, and its subsequent raids in in Manchester, Liverpool and Lancashire, had gone ahead on Wednesday afternoon rather than 0200 BST on Thursday after Mr Quick's memo blunder, Mr Taylor said. | The operation, and its subsequent raids in in Manchester, Liverpool and Lancashire, had gone ahead on Wednesday afternoon rather than 0200 BST on Thursday after Mr Quick's memo blunder, Mr Taylor said. |
| The BBC's Daniel Sandford said the change of timings had "put public lives at risk" because it was carried out when people were awake and in public areas. | The BBC's Daniel Sandford said the change of timings had "put public lives at risk" because it was carried out when people were awake and in public areas. |
| Police are questioning the 12 arrested men and "deep searches" of addresses are continuing, BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner added. | Police are questioning the 12 arrested men and "deep searches" of addresses are continuing, BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner added. |
| Eleven of those arrested are Pakistan-born nationals on student visas and one is a UK-born British national. Their ages range from a teenager to a 41-year-old, police said. | |
| Daniel Sandford | Daniel Sandford |
| BBC home affairs correspondent | BBC home affairs correspondent |
| What happened yesterday was something that put public lives at risk. Partly because an operation had to be brought forward quickly and that, potentially, if it turns out to be a genuine plot then the trial may not go as they would have planned. But more importantly, the way the arrests had to be carried out put students' lives at risk; the normal way of arresting people is dawn raids in their homes, completely contained with houses surrounded by officers. | What happened yesterday was something that put public lives at risk. Partly because an operation had to be brought forward quickly and that, potentially, if it turns out to be a genuine plot then the trial may not go as they would have planned. But more importantly, the way the arrests had to be carried out put students' lives at risk; the normal way of arresting people is dawn raids in their homes, completely contained with houses surrounded by officers. |
| But the pictures showed students being held up in a university library while people are being arrested outside a glass window. You can't think of a more risky situation in which someone could be arrested. | But the pictures showed students being held up in a university library while people are being arrested outside a glass window. You can't think of a more risky situation in which someone could be arrested. |
| If the police had had to open fire, where might the bullets have gone? If the person that they were arresting had been carrying some sort of weapon what kind of threat might that have posed? | If the police had had to open fire, where might the bullets have gone? If the person that they were arresting had been carrying some sort of weapon what kind of threat might that have posed? |
| The fact that his actions, in having a paper so broadly exposed in front of the cameras, led them having to make arrests in that kind of dangerous situation just shows why it is that he's had to go this morning. In pictures: Terror raids | The fact that his actions, in having a paper so broadly exposed in front of the cameras, led them having to make arrests in that kind of dangerous situation just shows why it is that he's had to go this morning. In pictures: Terror raids |
| Gordon Brown said: "Increasingly we have seen terrorist links with Pakistan and Britain. | |
| "I'll be talking to the Pakistan president Mr Zardari - we want the closest co-operation between Britain and Pakistan to deal with countering terrorism." | |
| After announcing he was to quit his post, Mr Quick said in a statement: "I have today offered my resignation in the knowledge that my action could have compromised a major counter-terrorism operation. | |
| "I deeply regret the disruption caused to colleagues undertaking the operation and remain grateful for the way in which they adapted quickly and professionally to a revised timescale." | |
| The senior Metropolitan Police officer has faced intense criticism from opposition politicians after revealing the confidential document to photographers after arriving for the Number 10 briefing in his anti-terrorism role and for the Association of Chief Police Officers. | |
| The memo, marked "secret", carried an outline briefing on an ongoing counter-terror operation. | |
| It contained the names of several senior officers, locations and details about the nature of the overseas threat. | |
| 'Right thing' | |
| Mayor of London Boris Johnson said it was "with great sadness" that he had accepted Mr Quick's resignation. | Mayor of London Boris Johnson said it was "with great sadness" that he had accepted Mr Quick's resignation. |
| He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the senior officer had a "very, very distinguished" career and that the memo incident had been "extremely unfortunate". | He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the senior officer had a "very, very distinguished" career and that the memo incident had been "extremely unfortunate". |
| The mayor confirmed Assistant Commissioner John Yates would replace Mr Quick as head of counter-terrorism. | The mayor confirmed Assistant Commissioner John Yates would replace Mr Quick as head of counter-terrorism. |
| A man was arrested at Liverpool John Moores University | |
| Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson paid tribute to Mr Quick who he said had "served with dedication and professionalism throughout his career". | Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson paid tribute to Mr Quick who he said had "served with dedication and professionalism throughout his career". |
| "I hold Bob in the highest regard, as a friend and colleague, and that opinion has not changed," he said. | "I hold Bob in the highest regard, as a friend and colleague, and that opinion has not changed," he said. |
| In a statement, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said she had been informed of Mr Quick's resignation by Sir Paul. | In a statement, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said she had been informed of Mr Quick's resignation by Sir Paul. |
| "Although the operation was successful, he felt that his position was untenable. I want to offer my sincere appreciation of all the outstanding work he has done in this role," she said. | "Although the operation was successful, he felt that his position was untenable. I want to offer my sincere appreciation of all the outstanding work he has done in this role," she said. |
| Shadow home secretary Chris Grayling said resigning was "the right thing to do". | Shadow home secretary Chris Grayling said resigning was "the right thing to do". |
| "The bit I don't understand is, why on earth a document like this is not locked in a briefcase as a matter of routine? I'd have just thought it would be blindingly obvious." | "The bit I don't understand is, why on earth a document like this is not locked in a briefcase as a matter of routine? I'd have just thought it would be blindingly obvious." |
| Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Chris Huhne agreed that such a "misjudgement" meant Mr Quick had to step down. | Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Chris Huhne agreed that such a "misjudgement" meant Mr Quick had to step down. |