A report by the home affairs select committee has concluded that the government’s response to the West Midlands police’s ban on Maccabi Tel Aviv fans was “clumsy”, “late”, and “did little more than inflame tensions”. Published on Sunday, the report meticulously analysed the original decision to prohibit away fans from a Europa League fixture against Aston Villa in November, as well as the intelligence and advice that informed it. The committee's findings painted a critical picture of both West Midlands Police (WMP) and the Home Office.

The report heavily criticised West Midlands Police, stating that the force relied on “inaccurate information” and “failed to do even basic due diligence” on its intelligence. A significant revelation was WMP’s “overly reliant” use of artificial intelligence, specifically Microsoft Copilot, in its intelligence gathering. This AI use reinforced “false narratives”, leading to the inclusion of false information about a non-existent match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and West Ham United. Officers were forced to apologise to the committee in January after this emerged, contradicting a previous statement by the chief constable who had denied the force used AI. The inquiry found that these actions caused “serious damage to trust... particularly among the local Jewish community, as well as to public confidence”. An interim report by Sir Andy Cooke, His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of the Constabulary, had previously identified a “confirmation bias” in the police’s assessments. Consequently, Chief Constable Craig Guildford was forced to step down and retire with immediate effect following the report’s publication and the home secretary’s withdrawal of confidence. Two investigations by the police watchdog are ongoing into the force and Guildford over potential misconduct.

The Home Affairs Committee also lambasted the Home Office for its delayed and ineffectual intervention. Despite being informed more than a week before the ban was publicly announced, the Home Office “failed to recognise the significance of the decision and escalate properly”. The report argued that by intervening only after the decision to ban away fans was taken, the government “increased tension around the fixture but was ineffectual in enabling Maccabi Tel Aviv fans to attend the fixture, which reflects unfavourably on the culture of the Home Office”. The committee also criticised ministers, including the Prime Minister and Home Secretary, for heightening tensions by publicly criticising the move too late, suggesting a private intervention earlier could have allowed fans to attend.

A crucial finding was the role of political pressure in the decision-making process. The ban, made by the council-led Safety Advisory Group (SAG), caused widespread outrage, with Keir Starmer calling it “wrong” and suggesting it amounted to antisemitism. While the committee found no evidence that antisemitism was a direct motivating factor for the ban, it clarified that the failure to consult the community had “damaged relations”. The report could not rule out that “political pressure played a part in the decision”, citing the attendance of councillors with a “stated political aim” who had a “disproportionate opportunity to influence Safety Advisory Group decision-making in a deeply divisive political issue”. Specific councillors mentioned include Mumtaz Hussain, who promoted a petition against the match, and Waseem Zaffar, an Aston Villa fan who wrote an editorial opposing it. The police’s concerns about disorder, which were based on faulty intelligence about a previous (and incorrectly dated) match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and Ajax, combined with local political pressure and community tensions, led to the controversial move. The committee noted that the original police advice about 5,000 Dutch officers being deployed for disorder was found to be false, originating from an unrelated game in Paris.

Dame Karen Bradley, chair of the committee, stated that the profile of this fixture “should have been obvious” to the government. She condemned the government's intervention as clumsy and too late, rejecting their argument that they could only intervene after the decision. Bradley also criticised WMP for an apparent “‘that’ll do’ attitude”, where information falsely characterising Maccabi fans as unusually violent was trusted without scrutiny, while threats from local communities were downplayed.

To address the issues and rebuild trust, particularly with the Jewish community, the committee made several recommendations. These include banning elected politicians from sitting on SAGs and urging West Midlands Police to repair the damage by reaching out to local communities and implementing a cultural shift in decision-making to ensure assumptions are tested and evidence fully checked. A WMP spokesperson confirmed their commitment to learning from these events and their efforts to repair public confidence. Councillor John Cotton, leader of Birmingham City Council, welcomed the report, emphasising the need to rebuild trust with Jewish communities. However, a spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism criticised the report for not addressing