Police and families should get unused Olympics tickets too, says Yvette Cooper

After it was announced that LOCOG were asking soldiers, teachers and students to fill empty Olympic seats, Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has urged Olympics organisers to give seats to police officers and their families too:

“LOCOG has said that accredited tickets which are not being used will be made available for military personnel, teachers and students. But I do hope they will also extend this to police officers and their families. Thousands of officers are working immensely hard to deliver a safe and secure games and have had no leave this summer as a result. Many of those same officers had no leave last summer because of the riots. Given that many officers have not had family summer holidays for two years in a row it would be great to recognise their hard work by offering them and their families some of the extra tickets too. Many officers have told me they would not be able to take up tickets because of the shifts and cover they need to provide for the Olympics but they would love their families who are also making sacrifices this summer to have the chance.

“We want as many people as possible to get a chance to enjoy the games and to support our Team GB athletes. We can also make sure those who protect us benefit too.”