Tomorrow’s Spending Review will be ‘crucial’ says branch chair

10 June 2025

North Yorkshire Police Federation chair Rob Bowles has described this week’s Spending Review as a 'crucial moment’ as he joined calls for sustained investment in policing.

Rob said it was time the Government listened to the voices of police officers and showed its support for them with a long-term commitment to increased funding.

He was speaking out in support of a hard-hitting national newspaper article, which warns that policing faces a ‘national emergency’.

Tiff Lynch, acting chair of the Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW), and Nick Smart, president of the Police Superintendents’ Association (PSA), have co-written the article for the Telegraph, spelling out the crisis in policing.

In it, they warn that policing faces a £1.2 billion shortfall, and that forces are ‘forced to shed officers and staff to deliver savings’.

Burnout

They write: “When a young constable looks down at their payslip and wonders how they’ll make rent this month, something is deeply wrong.

“When experienced detectives walk away from decades of service, broken by the demands placed on them”.

“Chief inspectors and superintendents – often the most senior officers on duty overnight across entire counties – are battling burnout and crushing stress.”

Rob said: “I welcome the joint article from PFEW and the PSA, and I hope that at long last the Government listens to the voices of police officers.

“For far too long, our warnings about the consequences of the savage cuts we’ve experienced in the past 10 to 15 years – but our warnings have been proved right.

The Chancellor, Rachel Reeves.

“Our members are under pressure, working longer hours than ever before, for 20 per cent less pay than a decade ago.

“Morale has plummeted, experienced officers are leaving, and policing is facing a crisis.

“They’ve ‘Copped Enough’.

“This week’s Spending Review is a crucial moment.

“It’s a chance for the Government to show it values police officers with a commitment to sustained, long-term investment that begins to undo the damage of the past decade and more.”

In their article, Tiff and Nick call for ‘sustained investment in structures, people, and new technology’.

They say policing needs:

A fair, independent pay review system not bound by Treasury limits, nor instructed in what is allowed to consider.
Immediate action to raise starting salaries, so policing is a viable, long-term career, not a financial sacrifice.
A long-term funding settlement that reflects genuine investment and allows chief constables to plan.
Real investment in officer wellbeing, not just words.
And a commitment to a defining purpose so that the police police, rather than doing the work of other public bodies.