‘Government must respect independence of PRRB’

18 August 2022

Police officers are an easy target for the Government because they’re unable to take industrial action, says the chair of Nottingham Police Federation.

Simon Riley said their pay and conditions have been eroded over the last 12 years partly because officers don’t have the right to strike.

Now he’s called for the independence of the Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB) – which oversees officer pay awards – to be respected by the Government to restore confidence in the process.

Simon said: “We’re treated as the poor relation of the public sector by the Government and that’s because it knows we can’t strike.

“We’ll be there policing strikes in other public sectors, facing the same cost of living crisis as them, having seen our pay, conditions and pensions eroded over the last 12 years, in the full knowledge we can’t take industrial action of our own.

“For years the Government has undermined the independence of the PRRB, limiting its scope and ignoring recommendations, all while accepting pay proposal recommendations of the MPs’ review body. Last year, police officers were given a zero per cent pay rise, with the Government citing financial pressures but just months later MPs were given a 2.7 per cent pay rise.

“The police pay review process has to be open, transparent and truly independent of Government so that we can have confidence in it.”

His comments were echoed by the chair of the Police Federation for England and Wales (PFEW), Steve Hartshorn, who has called for “a reset of relations with the Government”.

The PFEW last year withdrew its support and engagement with the PRRB, labelling the mechanism as “not fit for purpose”.

Steve said: “The independence of the PRRB must be upheld and not influenced by the Government by way of a remit to enable officers to have a fair pay mechanism, and the P-factor payment exclusive to policing must be included to ensure officers are paid fairly for the risks they take.

“We seek assurances from the Government that next year the PRRB will not be restrained by an unfair remit set by the Home Office, and that the unsustainable real-terms pay cut is addressed to ensure our members can afford to do the job they signed up for.

“We asked for a reset of relations with the Government, which is needed to ensure that the voice of our members is heard loud and clear at all levels of the Government every time decisions are made affecting their day-to-day lives.”