Brexit poses threat to officer rest days and leave
26 September 2018
Officers’ rest days and leave could be under threat from Brexit, the Police Federation of England and Wales has warned.
Simon Kempton, PFEW Operational Policing Lead said he was ‘highly concerned’ that there didn’t appear to be any clear picture of what policing would look like once the UK leaves the EU.
“Brexit is only six months away and we still don’t know what the policing landscape will look like post 29th March,” he said.
“As a Federation we are monitoring closely the planning around the UK’s departure and any domestic policing issues that may result from it.
“I have been involved in various strategic meetings and I’m aware there have been discussions about cancelling officers’ rest days and putting a moratorium on leave in the weeks and even months immediately pre and post the Brexit deadline,” he added.
He wants the Government to share their plans around how they intend to ask forces to deal with any civil unrest or public protest.
"There is no evidence to suggest there will be an increase in crime and disorder when a Brexit takes place, but public protest remains a possibility,” he said.
“Unfortunately, the planning and resourcing around such events will put further strain on a service which is already struggling from years of cuts and a lack of investment and support.
“it cannot be right that officers and their families are facing uncertainty over when they will be able to see their loved ones over this period.”
The National Police Chiefs Council says cross channel cooperation between forces is likely to be hindered post Brexit, potentially impacting the ability to share real-time alerts for missing or wanted persons and to track terrorist and criminal networks.
Access to EU Data and cross border crime busting tools such as the European Arrest Warrant and Europol Systems might not be available.
To combat the issue, it’s announced plans to set up a new Home Office funded national unit, to be partly staffed by officers, National Crime Agency and National Criminal Records Office (ACRO) staff.
They will identify non-EU crime fighting tools, such as Interpol, bilateral channels and Council of Europe conventions and will help forces to use them.
The PFEW worries the unit could divert resources away from already stretched areas.
Simon said: “The new unit is a positive move but my worry is that the officers used to staff this unit will need to be diverted from other already stretched areas, thus creating more capacity and back-filling issues.”
NPCC Chair Sara Thornton defended the plan.
“We have agreed a model that minimises the risks and makes best use of already pressured police resources,” she said.
“It’s vital our operational planning is joined up across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland and our relationship with our European counterparts remains strong.
“We will continue to work together in the interests of UK and EU citizens.”
