Kent Police Federation: There is suggestion uplift of police officers in some way justifies lessening a pay award for police officers

8 December 2021

“The suggestion is that the uplift of police officers in some way justifies lessening a pay award for police officers”

Kent Police Federation Chair Neil Mennie has reacted after Home Secretary Priti Patel contacted the Police Remuneration Review Body this week with their “remit” for advising on a police officer pay rise in 2022/23.

Police officers were given no pay rise in 2021 when the Home Secretary tied the PRRB’s hands under the guise of public sector pay restraint. Either way, whatever the PRRB advises Government, it is up to the Home Secretary to decide what the police officer pay rise award should be.

In her letter to the PRRB, The Home Secretary states: “I ask that your recommendations and observations are considered in the context of the Government’s commitment to increase police officer numbers by 20,000 over three years” and “The Government must balance the need to ensure fair pay for public sector workers with protecting funding for frontline services and ensuring affordability for taxpayers’”.

Neil said: “‘Once again we see the letter to the ‘independent’ PRRB setting out the direction of any pay settlement. It’s worth remembering that the uplift of officers although welcome is only replacing what we lost through huge cuts. The suggestion that the uplift in some way justifies lessening a pay award will not go down well.

“I anticipate a crumb of a pay rise that will continue not have kept pace with the cost of living and I will only be too happy to eat my words should I be wrong.

“There is a kind of depreciation that you apply to your car that seems to be mirrored with police pay and it’s just not fair.”

Both the Police Federation of England and Wales and Superintendents’ Association have backed out the PRRB process following last year’s pay freeze.