The Metropolitan Police is set to significantly reduce its policing presence at Trooping the Colour and other major royal ceremonial events, with a private security company expected to take over the majority of duties.
The changes, which are due to come into effect next month, will affect the King’s official birthday parade, gun salutes and the Changing of the Guard.
The move comes amid growing financial pressures on the Metropolitan Police and increased demand for officers to return to frontline neighbourhood policing.
According to reports, the force has withdrawn what sources described as the “vast majority” of its policing provision for Trooping the Colour, leaving only a minimal police presence at the events.
Over the past 12 months, the Met deployed officers on approximately 17,800 occasions to support military ceremonial events, at an estimated cost of £10.6 million.
The deployments have required officers to be diverted from frontline duties, including specialist personnel such as motorcycle officers from the force’s traffic divisions.
A Metropolitan Police spokesman defended the changes, saying: “The public rightly want to see officers on the front line, arresting criminals and keeping our city safe. That’s our priority.”
The spokesman added that, against a backdrop of financial cuts and increased demand, the force had been required to make difficult decisions about its resources.
The Met said it had held discussions with the Ministry of Defence over proposed changes to its support for military ceremonial events.
However, the decision has prompted concerns from senior military figures about the implications of reducing the police presence at high-profile royal occasions.
Lord Dannatt, the former Chief of the General Staff, questioned whether private security could provide the same level of protection.
“The bottom line is internal security is the responsibility of the Metropolitan Police, end of story,” he said.
“I am surprised that a risk assessment can outsource something like this to private security. On the face of it, it sounds wrong and shouldn’t be driven on cost grounds.”
An Army source also warned that a private contractor could not provide the same level of assurance to soldiers and members of the public in the event of a potential security threat.
The concerns come amid wider security threats facing serving military personnel in Britain, including the 2024 attempted murder of Lieutenant Colonel Mark Teeton by Anthony Esan.
Shadow Defence Secretary James Cartlidge described the reported changes as “very concerning”, arguing that members of the Armed Forces should be entitled to expect appropriate policing at major ceremonial events.
He urged ministers to provide urgent reassurance that such occasions would continue to be properly protected.
Liberal Democrat MP Mike Martin, a member of the Defence Select Committee, also criticised the decision, describing it as “outrageous”.
He argued that reducing police protection at major ceremonial occasions could undermine Britain’s wider national security resilience.
The Metropolitan Police has stressed that its future support for military events will be determined by assessments of threat, harm and risk, with officers deployed where operationally necessary.
The Ministry of Defence said it continued to work collaboratively with the force on ceremonial occasions.
A spokesman said: “We continue to work collaboratively with the Metropolitan Police on ceremonial events and greatly value the support of our policing colleagues, whose contribution to delivering these important activities is invaluable.”
