UK police used more force in lockdown despite lower crime rates

Exclusive: Figures from 32 forces show 15% fall in crime and 12.5% increase in use of force from April to June

Police officers deploying the use of force against members of the public was higher at the height of lockdown than in the previous three months despite crime rates falling significantly, it can be revealed.

Analysis by Liberty Investigates and the Guardian of figures obtained through freedom of information laws from 32 police forces in England and Wales shows there were almost 20,000 more recorded instances of uses of force by officers, an increase of 12.5%. From April to June there were 163,749 instances compared with 145,543 from January to March.