West Midlands police chief Craig Guildford to retire after Maccabi Tel Aviv fan ban for Aston Villa Europa League match

The chief constable of West Midlands Police is to retire after his force faced criticism over the decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv football fans from attending a football match against Aston Villa.

Craig Guildford will step down with immediate effect as the head of the force following mounting pressure for him to quit over the controversy.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said she had lost confidence in the senior police boss after a "damning" watchdog review showed "confirmation bias" and a "failure of leadership" in West Midlands Police.

Mr Guildford's decision to retire was announced by West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner Simon Foster outside police headquarters in Birmingham on Friday.

Mr Guildford has "done the right thing" by stepping down, the Home Secretary has said.

Mahmood said: "The findings of the chief inspector were damning. They set out a catalogue of failings that have harmed trust in West Midlands Police.

"By stepping down, Craig Guildford has done the right thing today.

"I would like to acknowledge his years of service. And I pay tribute to the work of the officers in West Midlands Police, who keep their community safe every day.

"Today marks a crucial first step to rebuilding trust and confidence in the force amongst all the communities they serve."

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Guildford apologised to MPs for giving them an error in evidence, which arose from the use of artificial intelligence over the decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans.

West Midlands Police said it would take "immediate action" to rectify problems identified in an investigation into what led the fans to be banned.

Force leaders have been under fire over the decision to ban supporters of the Israeli football team from attending a Europa League match against Aston Villa on November 6.

Guildford wrote to the Home Affairs Committee to apologise for the mistake, after he appeared twice to give evidence over the controversy.

In a report to the Birmingham City Council Safety Advisory Group over whether to prevent supporters from attending the game, West Midlands Police referenced a match between the Israeli club and West Ham that never happened.

In a letter to committee chairwoman Dame Karen Bradley, the senior police figure said evidence given to the committee by himself and assistant chief constable Mike O'Hara that wrong intelligence over a West Ham match with Maccabi Tel Aviv was because a Google search was incorrect.

Instead, the "erroneous result" arose from the use of the artificial intelligence tool Microsoft Copilot.

Guildford wrote: "Both ACC O'Hara and I had, up until Friday afternoon, understood that the West Ham match had only been identified through the use of Google.

"I would like to offer my profound apology to the Committee for this error, both on behalf of myself and that of ACC O'Hara.

"I had understood and been advised that the match had been identified by way of a Google search in preparation for attending HAC.

"My belief that this was the case was honestly held and there was no intention to mislead the Committee."

Maccabi Tel Aviv fans were barred from travelling to the game at Villa Park by the local Safety Advisory Group (SAG), which cited safety concerns based on advice from the police force.

The decision by the SAG - which is made up of representatives from the council, police and other authorities - sparked political outrage, including from Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.

Since then, doubts have been growing over the intelligence used by police, including disputes over the accuracy of information.

Guildford has insisted the decision was not politically influenced.