After the tragedy that occurred on the night of Friday the 13th  November on the streets of Paris, much of the community have been left worried about the affect it may leave. It has been rumoured that it is most likely that London will be the next target, however this is not a fact. What is more important is the precautions we are being urged to take even as local people. Later that weekend the local organisation ‘Love Wimbledon’ sent around an urgent message to businesses including what the next steps for them should be. The message, based on information the Met Police had released, informed local businesses that this was not just an international issue but they must be aware of the risk it has to them. In the message it clearly instructed  ‘all businesses to review their continuity plans’ hinting at the fact it is no longer a passing issue but instead they must ‘ensure their staff are trained to respond to these incidents’.

 

The media strongly expressed we should not let ‘terrorists defeat us’ and therefore not to live in fear of them. However, it is inevitable that at this point in time the majority of European citizens are revaluating their view on the likelihood of how a terrorist attack will affect them. From this it is clear that the effect of the Paris attack is not only the disparity and devastation it has left on the city of love, but also that every citizen of the UK must now realise the threat of international terrorism is severe and it is therefore essential we adjust our safety measures. The fact this message was sent out by ‘Love Wimbledon’ highlights that local businesses need to be aware that these threats affect everyone’s daily lives.

 

Furthermore, at the recent friendly game between France and England that occurred just three days after the attacks the Met Police altered their police system warning fans that they should expect the sight of armed officers in and around the stadium. The police were present from early morning on the day of the evening game, in preparation in case any event was to occur. Supporters were also urged to be prepared for not only more security checks before but to be on guard and report anything that they noticed to be of concern to 999.

Kitty Toon Ursuline High School