COUNCIL LEADER: BRING BACK PARKS POLICE
The Leader of Richmond Council, Cllr. Gareth Roberts has called for the return of the Royal Parks Police following the incident where a deer had to be shot dead after searching for food from a Richmond Park visitor, who was slightly injured by the stag.
He told Teddington Town: “This is the sort of thing many of us have been warning about since the decision was taken to disband the Royal Parks Police.
“Unfortunately, people ignore the information signs and the warnings from park rangers and volunteers about not feeding the deer and then incidents like this happen, resulting in the injuring of a park visitor and the shooting of one of the stags.
“We need the Royal Parks Police to enforce the regulations and use their authority when they see people either feeding or getting too close to the deer. “
And he warned: “The next incident could be so much worse.”
The council leader, the council, local MP’s as well as local campaigning groups have urged the London Mayor to restore the Parks Police since they were disbanded last November as part of sweeping budget cuts for the Metropolitan Police.