Police boss who banned Maccabi Tel Aviv fans retires with immediate effect

The police chief at the centre of a row over banning fans from attending a football match in Birmingham has retired from his job.

Craig Guildford, Chief Constable for West Midlands Police, confirmed his decision to step down at 4pm today.

His retirement means that he will still be able to receive his full pension, The Guardian reported.

Police and Crime Commissioner Simon Foster said his retirement was taking place in the ‘best interest’ of West Midlands Police. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said he had ‘done the right thing’.

It comes after the force faced months of criticism over its decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from attending the Europa League game against Aston Villa on November 6 last year.

At the time, the force cited concerns about disorder and protest related to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.

A review was then launched into the decision by the policing watchdog, His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Constabulary. They found that ‘confirmation bias’ influenced the decision to bar supporters of the Israeli football team.

The watchdog said several ‘inaccuracies’ had been included in a report given to Birmingham’s safety advisory group by West Midlands Police, including reference to a non-existent game between between Maccabi Tel Aviv and West Ham.

When giving evidence to MPs about this later on, Mr Guildford said the game was found during a Google search.

But in a letter to MPs, which was published on Wednesday, instead it was found using an AI tool.

He later apologised, saying: ‘I would like to offer my profound apology to the committee for this error. I had understood and been advised that the match had been identified by way of a Google search in preparation for attending HAC.

‘My belief that this was the case was honestly held and there was no intention to mislead the committee.’

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood then said she had lost confidence in him, and his critics urged for him to resign, which he did not do.

In response, the Home Office announced plans to give Home Secretaries the power to sack chief constables – a power that has, for the past 15 years, been solely held by Police and Crime Commissioners.

Birmingham City Council leader John Cotton said he should stand down or be sacked after the Home Secretary’s statement while the Board of Deputies of British Jews called for him to be dismissed ‘without delay’.

Foster, who is the only person who has the power to sack him, refused to remove him from his post, saying instead he wanted to wait for a report to be published from the Home Affairs Committee and to question him at a board meeting on January 27.

The Board of Deputies of British Jews welcomed the news.

Phil Rosenberg, president of the Board of Deputies, said: ‘After the calamitous handling of the Aston Villa versus Maccabi Tel Aviv fixture and its aftermath, it is right that the chief constable is departing from his role early.

‘We are grateful to the Home Secretary and politicians across all the main parties for the clear stance they have taken on this matter, including the work of the Home Affairs Select Committee and HMIC in getting to the facts.

‘After this debacle, we support proposals for the power to sack chief constables to be restored to the Home Secretary.

‘Strong working relationships with the police are vital to the security of Jewish communities locally and nationally.

‘We are ready to work with the local Jewish community, the chief constable’s successors and the Government to restore confidence that this episode has so seriously eroded.’

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