In reaction to the appointment of Rt. Hon. James Cleverly MP as new Home Secretary, the Police Federation of England and Wales will be urgently seeking a meeting with him to address issues being faced by police officers, including pay and working conditions.

PFEW Deputy National Chair, Tiff Lynch, said: “Police officers are currently working against all imaginable odds, in a challenging and difficult environment where they are subject to verbal and physical assaults from all sides.

“Police officers have endured a real terms pay cut of nearly 20 per cent since 2000. While officers got a pay uplift this year, it is merely a small step in the right direction.

"The Government has done little to acknowledge the unique position of police officers in society and to adequately and fairly compensate them for the dangers they face while doing their job.

"A concerning number of new recruits are leaving within months of starting their policing careers because of the pay squeeze and demands they face.

"In addition to this, morale, which is at an all-time low, is causing longer-serving, experienced officers to quit. This is stretching our forces to a breaking point and having a detrimental impact, not just on the service we want to provide to protect the public, but also on the officers who provide it.

“Policing is the service of the first and last resort. It is a service that cannot say no. Government needs to demonstrate that it understands and values this, and we will be seeking an urgent meeting with the new Home Secretary to discuss these matters.”