OnwardandUpward
The reason Boris wasted all that money on the water cannons that could not be used is that in Germany a man suffered serious eye damage with his eye balls popping out of his fractured sockets after being in the way of a water cannon.
It's a shame more research was not done as a great deal of
UK money was wasted by the conservatives when they had to basically sell them for scrap because they couldn't be used here.
The man is now virtually blind.
I have no idea what he was actually doing other than taking part in a protest against plans for the expansion of the main Stuttgart railway which was broken up by water cannon. A jet hit his eyelids which ripped them apart and also broke the bones around his eye sockets which caused his eyeballs to quite literally fall out.
I'm not sure though that is the reason why the cannons were sold on by Germany. I think it's more likely they'd reached the end of their 'shelf life' and more modern versions were replacing them. Hence the 'knockdown' sale price.
However, if Johnson had done his research - but he was never a man for detail he would have realised that we had never used them, only in Northern Ireland, and that David Cameron was opposed to their use. Theresa May banned the use of them ultimately.
They would also have had to be 'modified' prior to use.
I'm not knowledgeable about these matters but I'd imagine if one of the rioters was seriously injured by a water cannon he or she might have a legitimate case for legal action. Or if the rioters - who don't hesitate to overturn police cars and set them on fire - commandeered one of the water cannons...
Anyway, who knows, I don't, but we are not 'licensed' to use them so presumably this would have to be a decision for the Home Secretary.
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