I fear Andrew Mitchell was set up, says Labour MP He continued: "Somehow or other, they turned it into a national issue. I don't think it's in the public interest that the Police Federation should be allowed to reshuffle the Government. Mr Mullin said he did not believe Mr Mitchell would have called the police officers "plebs." Members of the Police Federation were voluble in the weeks after the row erupted, picketing Mr Mitchell's constituency office in the West Midlands wearing T-shirts emblazoned with the words "PC Pleb and Proud." Local federation representatives said Mr Mitchell had to resign because he had refused to give precise details of what he had said in his tirade. However, a recording of the meeting made by Mr Mitchell, which was broadcast on Channel Four News on Tuesday, made clear that he had given his side of the story. There has been speculation that the federation's motivation was due to disputes with ministers over pensions.