How can he cling on? West Midlands Police chief ‘refuses to quit’ over Maccabi Tel Aviv fan ban despite losing the confidence of Shabana Mahmood – as force admits ‘mistakes were made’

West Midlands Police has admitted ‘mistakes were made’ in its controversial decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from attending the Aston Villa match.

The force came under intense scrutiny after supporters of the Israeli football team were banned from attending a football match at Birmingham’s Villa Park last November due to security concerns.

Chief Constable Craig Guildford now faces calls to resign after the force’s ‘damning’ review of the decision was published earlier today.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said the report showed ‘confirmation bias’ and a ‘failure of leadership’ at West Midlands Police, adding that PC Guildford ‘no longer trusts me’.

Responding to concerns, the force admitted that ‘mistakes were made’ and apologized ‘for the impact they have had on individuals and communities’.

But Mr Guildford’s senior leadership position was never mentioned.

Meanwhile, sources close to Mr Guildford claimed he would oppose any attempt to remove him from his position and would ‘not accept’ suggestions that he resign.

“He wants due process, he won’t accept it,” one source told The Times, while another added: “He won’t go voluntarily.”

The Home Secretary asked Sir Andy Cooke, Inspector of Her Majesty’s Constabulary, Fire and Rescue Service, for a review into the actions of West Midlands Police, and its provisional findings were published today.

He told the House of Commons that his findings showed West Midlands Police were ‘only looking for evidence to support their desired position, which is to ban fans’.

He said there had been a ‘failure of leadership’ at the top of the force and this had ‘injected further misinformation into our public debate’.

Ms Mahmood told MPs today: “It catalogs failures that have not only affected traveling fans but also let down our entire Jewish community in the West Midlands and across the country.”

He added: ‘Ultimate responsibility for the force’s failure to fulfill its duties on a matter of such national importance rests with the chief constable and I must therefore declare today that I no longer have confidence in the chief constable of West Midlands Police.’

However, he expressed disappointment at his failure to sack the Chief Constable, Mr Guildford; He said this power was removed from the home secretary’s remit during the coalition government’s reforms in 2011, which introduced police and crime commissioners.

His explosive remarks left Mr Guildford in an almost untenable situation and placed the onus on West Midlands police and the crime commissioner (PCC) Simon Foster, who had the power to sack him.

Mr Foster has refused to sack the chief constable and is awaiting parliament’s report on the matter before considering his position to replace him.

He said he had not seen the letter in which Sir Andy set out his ‘preliminary views’ before Wednesday and that he ‘must now consider this matter carefully and in detail’.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood tells MPs findings of report into West Midlands Police are ‘damning’

West Midlands Police said it would ‘take immediate action’ to fix the issues raised by Sir Andy in his report.

Responding to concerns, the force said in a statement on Wednesday evening: ‘We continue to actively maintain and support oversight of HMICFRS.

‘We received a copy of the preliminary review today and accept that it acknowledges the unintentional nature of our errors.

‘We are extremely sorry for the impact these have had on individuals and communities. We are taking immediate action to address the issues raised in these preliminary findings.

‘We recognize that errors were made, but we reiterate the findings that none of them were made with intent to distort or discriminate.’

The letter continues: ‘West Midlands Police is an anti-discrimination organization and our planning for this football match was always concerned with the public safety of all communities.

‘We continue to focus on protecting the people of the West Midlands and improving our services, as we have done continuously over the last few years.

‘We will now work tirelessly to rebuild trust in West Midlands Police.’