They are most likely loose too though you know Point taken gracefully
Apprently the Police have barricaded off the entrace to one of the retail parks in Blazingsmoke OMG they was going to riot Toys'R'Us
My 0.2c on this...
The problem is guys, if the police rush at the people doing it, they are generally out numbered which is only a small problem compared to all the people getting through and around the police lines, effectively splitting into several smaller (yet still fairly huge) groups. The whole "16000 officers in London" thing doesn't mean they are all in one place. They are still spread out across the 32 boroughs of London. Obviously more in certain areas, but I think a lot of people on the news are expecting a Braveheart style formation of thousands of officers ready to start a charge. I would love to see that happen, but it wont.
I've been there, I have colleagues there now and too many people say "it's not difficult" or "just smash their heads in" etc etc, but it really isn't that easy or simple. If one police officer was to get isolated after a bad decision was made to "charge" they will almost certainly get a hell of a beating and trust me, it could have happened to me or any one of my colleagues this week. Who would be to blame for that happening? The thugs who do it of course, but what about the person who makes the order? The person who makes the call to effectively break ranks. The people in charge of organising police lines have A LOT of pressure on them to make sure that none of their officers get injured or worse. They are responsible for any orders and will ultimately be held accountable.
It's an awful analogy to use, but it is one we all know. During World War 1 orders were made without the knowledge that things were going horribly wrong on the front line. People on the front line acted on these orders not always knowing that things were going wrong ahead of them. So effectively the blind were leading the blind. This can easily happen at night, in the back alleys of London (or any other city). The Police helicopter can't be everywhere nor are CCTV cameras.