Surrey Police Federation gives its view on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill

9 March 2021

The Home Office is doing the ‘right thing’ in bringing in ‘overdue’ new protections for police officers, says Surrey Police Federation.

The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Billis being read for the first time in Parliament this week.

Part of the Bill will look to support police drivers better in law, shielding them from unfair criminal prosecutions and charges for just doing their job.

It’s also expected to pave the way for Special Constables to join their local Police Federations and double the maximum sentences handed down to those who assault emergency service workers from one year to two years.

Currently, police drivers are treated the same as the public in law despite the intensive training they receive.

Surrey Police Federation Chair Mel Warnes said the new rules, long campaigned for by the Federation, would make a welcome addition to the law books.

“Police driver protection is a great piece of news and something really positive to come later this year,” she said.

“Police drivers complete training to enable them to drive in a safe manner outside the normal circumstances of a member of the public driving.

“It is right they should be dealt with differently and protected owing to the standard of training they have undertaken.

“They are taught techniques that if completed by an untrained member of the public would constitute an offence, but as they have been trained, they should not be treated the same,” she added.

“This Bill has been a long time coming and thankfully will afford those that need it the protection for doing a job in the way they have been trained. It cannot be brought in soon enough to protect my police driver members.”

Special officers deserve to receive the same benefits of Federation membership as their warranted colleagues in part because of the ‘amazing’ job they do and all the extra hours they put in, Mel said.

“We voted on Specials being part of the Federation some time ago, and finally, this will be fully in place later in the year. It is the right thing to do.

“Many Special colleagues are doing an amazing job alongside the regulars and deserve to be protected in the same way the Federation protect their membership.

“In Surrey, we already ensure we support any specials through a Post Incident Procedure if they are part of one with our members.

“As we know, many Specials are putting in extra hours during the pandemic to help out, putting themselves at risk alongside their colleagues.

“I hope the PCC and other PCC’s across the country continue to support paying for the Federation membership for Specials as it should not be right they pay for it themselves when they are not being paid to do the job.”

Mel said the doubling of sentences to 24 months for attacks on police officers - in a bid to protect officers from assaults - would only work if the courts use the powers granted to them.

All too often, perpetrators are not getting the sentences to deter others from attacking emergency service workers, she said.

“I hope the doubling of sentences for assaulting emergency workers will have some positive effect, but I can’t help that think it won’t,” she said.

“Assaults are increasing, and a lack of support from the judicial system is meaning that there are very few receiving the sentence they deserve.

“Will a possible two-year imprisonment put them off when they are not receiving anything near to a one year sentence now?

“It is positive that the Government are taking this step, but until the courts start to impose automatic prison sentences for assaulting emergency workers, there is no deterrent to stop those people in the first place.

“More work needs to be done on deterring them and making them think twice about it.”