The London Metropolitan Police will be deploying no fewer than 10,000 of its personnel for Monday’s funeral of Queen Elizabeth 11 in what is described as the biggest security operation in Scotland Yard’s near-200 year history.
It is also the largest global protection operation by the force.
Hundreds of VIPs are expected at the funeral.
The police will form a ring of steel around Westminster Abbey with 34 arrests already made in the lead up to the event, The Mail of London reported yesterday.
The officers will be guarding central London and the Queen’s 23 mile route to Windsor Castle on Monday while many roads and bridges will be shut to traffic and miles of barriers put up to control crowds and keep key areas empty or secure.
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Deputy Assistant Commissioner (DAC) of Met, Stuart Cundy, was quoted as saying the police would use “all tools and tactics available” to protect the Queen’s coffin, the Royal Family, hundreds of VIPs and world leaders and the 1million people expected to head to the capital to mourn.
He said the “hugely complex” policing operation is the biggest in the force’s history, surpassing the London 2012 Olympics which saw up to 10,000 police officers on duty per day.
“This will be the largest single policing event that the Met Police has ever undertaken,” he said.
He added: “As a single event this is larger than the 2012 Olympics, it is larger than the Platinum Jubilee weekend. The range of officers, police staff and all those supporting the operation is truly immense.”
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Cundy also said 34 people have been arrested as part of the policing operation ahead of the funeral.
The Queen’s four children –King Charles, Anne, Andrew and Edward- and the grandchilren were joined by mourners for the final vigil for the deceased.
Mourners spent up to 13 hours on queues to pay their last respects to the Queen during the lying- in-state.
