The day the world comes to London

This is the weekend when the Olympics really come to life.

Tonight, at long last, the Olympic torch arrives at the Tower of London, to start a seven-day tour around the capital. Also from tonight, the Olympic Road Network (ORN) starts to take shape in earnest, with workers blocking off turnings, painting lanes and putting up signs; it goes live for its full length next Wednesday morning. This weekend, most of the IOC “Olympic family” will arrive. Already, the capital seems congested: taxi drivers complain about the difficulties. This balance of excitement and inconvenience will be the pattern for the next three weeks. We should keep it in proportion.

Certainly the road restrictions will create difficulties. Parts of the road network will be very congested indeed. Driving via Hyde Park Corner, for example, is likely to be frustrating. There will be knock-on effects for traffic far across the capital. This is partly because of venues being spread across town, from Wembley to Greenwich. Also, from tomorrow, the torch’s route, criss-crossing the city every day to take in all 33 boroughs, is likely to cause considerable if brief disruption. Next Friday the Victoria Embankment and many bridges across the Thames will be closed for the culmination of the relay. Meanwhile the numbers of passengers using the public transport network will swell steadily during next week.

Yet the experience of the provinces has been that, despite closure of major roads, public feeling about the torch relay was overwhelmingly positive — indeed, turnout far exceeded organisers’ expectations. London will surely feel even greater pride when the torch comes to neighbourhoods and local people carry it — such as actor Sir Patrick Stewart in his native Croydon. That excitement will mount further at the end of next week, when the opening ceremony finally arrives. A new poll today suggests that seven out of 10 people think the Games will lift the mood of the nation, while six in 10 think it will improve Britain’s image in the world.

There is no way that a working capital city of eight million people could host the largest sporting event in the world without it causing upheaval. There will be times when overcrowded Tube platforms, traffic jams and the sheer crowds will irritate Londoners. But there is no question that this is above all an extraordinary moment for London — and we are looking forward to it immensely.

THE acquittal yesterday of Simon Harwood, the police officer accused of killing Ian Tomlinson, raises troubling questions. However, despite the strength of the case against him — he was filmed striking Mr Tomlinson at the G20 protest in 2009, and an inquest found that the newspaper seller was unlawfully killed — it is plain that there was not clear enough evidence to convict him.

Since the incident the Met has done a better job at major demonstrations such as the student fees protests of 2010, striking a balance between being too aggressive and still containing trouble. That is always a fine line for police to walk. But whatever the challenges, they have to get it right in order to maintain the public’s trust in the force.

More worrying is why the Met hired Harwood. He had previously been accused of violence and misconduct, and escaped a serious disciplinary charge in 2001 by retiring on grounds of ill health — only to join Surrey police and then rejoin the Met.Police cannot predict the outcome of every demonstration. They can, however, ensure that they do not hire people with a history of allegations of misconduct, and that training for such sensitive work as the Territorial Support Group weeds out unsuitable individuals. The Met still has lessons to learn.