http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015 ... is-johnson

Is it possible even she knows the Met. can't be trusted with them? I seriously doubt she gives a crap about people getting hurt, I'd guess it's more about the media having a field day with them.

Reading this headline, I thought that she'd just turned down a rather unusual water based "activity"

Given some of the footage I've seen of the same model Boris bought being used, there's a very strong chance of a massive media backlash should they be used here. I don't think even the Murdoch media could put a positive spin on people being maimed in the street by the police.

BTW, it's something of a misnomer to call them 'water cannons' - they don't just spray water, what they spray is a rather evil mix of chemicals designed to have several combined effects, including blinding, nausea and making the street surface extremely slippery so it's difficult to stay in the area it's been 'deployed'. It's apparently also an utter bitch to clean up afterwards, eats into concrete and all sorts.

Basically they're a very nasty thing which we shouldn't ever need to use. If we ever have to use water cannon against our own population, somebody in Westminster has utterly, utterly failed in their job.

And Johnson being the complete dunderhead he is had already spent several hundred grand of other people's money on them. Well done you!

I suspect it depends what you actually put in the tank but yes, wherever they've been used it doesn't normally seem to just be water that's been used. In any case, even just with water, the pressure is sufficient to cause some pretty serious injuries if you happen to be close enough or if it batters you into an obstacle.



Couldn't agree more although haven't the police used water cannons in Northern Ireland in the past (not that that alters the point in any way)?

Yeah, nothing new over here, though I couldn't tell you what model. Also, we have a police ombudsman who is very thorough

The average rioter over here just laughs it off, but then maybe the PSNI isn't cranking up the water pressure. If an officer so much as chambers a round they have to fill out a report to the ombudsman, so you can assume water cannon might be more trouble than they're worth.

*cough* . I did read a comment that they were mostly used to put out burning cars because the fire service wouldn't go near them when things were a bit excited.



Given it's The Met any such report will probably be a George R Martin level work of fiction. "the perpetrator waved her shopping basket at me in a threatening manner, and I felt it necessary under the circumstances to use water cannon and baton rounds".

Shopping basket. Sounds like it would be better to take off and nuke the site from orbit. It's the only way to be sure.