In my view, arming police would not make the slightest difference to the threat’s severity or to keeping the public and police safe.
In France, Turkey and Germany, which have tragically suffered the most recent terrorist attacks, police on the streets are very visibly armed but this did not deter those attacks.
It did nothing to stop Anis Amri driving a truck into a Berlin Christmas market at speed.
A terrorist bent on attacking, who does not care if he lives or dies, will not be stopped by the knowledge local police are armed.
And there is a far greater chance we will face a domestic abuse incident or a road traffic accident than a terrorist attack.
Training and arming police would put a huge strain on the force – taking resources from where we need them, in daily protection.
Firearms training facilities are not there for 20-30,000 officers, it would be impossible operationally and structurally.
Most senior officers have not been firearms trained and we don’t have enough instructors.
There’s also the fear of accidental blue on blue shooting. Firing a gun is a huge responsibility to place on our police.
Violence can escalate violence, meaning there is a danger that if our police carried guns, more criminals would do so too.
Then our officers would be at greater risk.
I’m proud of our policing tradition. The belief that we do not arm our officers means each of us feel able to approach them, to see them as equals, and to trust them.
I feel uneasy seeing armed officers where they are not needed.
We have officers trained in firearms who are used when and where intelligence says they are required.
I’m all for reinforcing those numbers if statistics and safety say you should. But no one has shown me, statistically, they are currently not able to cope.
It is investment in intelligence and specialist training for our firearms teams which will help keep us and our police safe.
Not every officer is physically and psychologically able to handle a firearm or live with the guilt of using it.
We do not want officers who are trigger happy, the unnecessary loss of lives and a lengthy investigations process.