James Anderton - Chief Constable

Chief Constable

One of Anderton's first acts as Chief Constable was a drive against pornography and prostitution. A special squad raided 284 bookshops, newsagents and warehouses, confiscating a total of 160,000 magazines to a street value of £200,000. Seizures included the Sun Page Three Annual. The crackdown received support from feminists and anti-pornography campaigners, but was criticised by civil liberties groups as a moral crusade. Anderton replied to his critics by stating that he was responding to public complaints regarding the graphic nature of the material available in shops across Greater Manchester. It has also been argued that organised crime gangs in Manchester controlled the sale and distribution of pornographic material as well as running brothels, massage parlours and street prostitution.

There was also a drive against late night drinking in the city centre of Manchester with particular focus against illegal drinking clubs and after hours drinking in licensed bars and clubs. As a result, 24 nightclubs had their licences revoked by magistrates. This tight police control led to a significant reduction in levels of drink related crime and disorder in Manchester city centre.

Regular patrols were also conducted into the Canal Street area of central Manchester, a red-light district and the centre of Manchester's homosexual community. Anderton was frequently criticised by gay rights activists of devoting undue attention to the policing of the area due to his alleged prejudice towards the gay community. According to The Guardian, Anderton "encouraged his officers to stalk its dank alleys and expose anyone caught in a clinch, while police motorboats with spotlights cruised for gay men around the canal's locks and bridges". Anderton responded to criticism by stating that he was merely enforcing the law regarding sexual activity in public toilets and that there had been a significant number of complaints from local people regarding police inaction.

In 1977 Greater Manchester Police was the first English police force to deploy a plain clothes "decoy" squad to lure street robbers or "muggers" into the open. Anderton adopted the tactic from the New York Police Department.

Also in 1977 James Anderton ordered the creation of the Greater Manchester Police Tactical Aid Group. Modelled on the Metropolitan Police Special Patrol Group, the Tactical Aid Group (TAG) was responsible for providing GMP a centrally-based mobile reserve for combating public disorder and crime that could not be dealt with by local divisions. The TAG was regularly deployed to combat football violence and also disorder during demonstrations and industrial disputes. Greater Manchester Police became the leading English police force outside the Metropolitan Police for the development of public order tactics and use of firearms.

Between 1977 and 1979, Anderton received media attention by successfully ensuring a series of marches by the far right National Front passed without serious incident. In summer of 1977, marches in Ladywood and Lewisham had been marred by riots. After initially banning a march proposed for October 1977, he met secretly with the National Front's deputy leader, Martin Webster, and agreed to allow a march to take place if the location was kept secret. In order to control opposing demonstrators, GMP was placed on standby, reinforcements drafted in from neighbouring forces and helicopters deployed. The cost for this operation - the most sophisticated public order operation in Britain up to that date - amounted to £250,000. Another two massive policing operations allowed Front meetings to take place in Hyde and Bolton town halls in January and February 1978.