Welsh Lead attends drop-in event for Police Federation and MPs

21 June 2023

Welsh Lead Nicky Ryan attended a drop-in event held at the House of Commons, giving members of the Police Federation a great opportunity to engage with politicians and update them on current campaigns. 

A dozen Welsh MPs attended the event, along with Welsh national board member Leigh Godfrey, as well as Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW) chair Steve Hartshorn and deputy Tiff Lynch. Representatives from all four Welsh branches, Matthew Candy for Gwent, Steve Treharne for South Wales, Mark Jones for North Wales and Gareth Jones for Dyfed Powys, were also in attendance.

Nicky said the event, which took place on Monday 12 June at Westminster and was sponsored by Rt Hon David Jones, MP for Clwyd West, gave representatives from across the Police Federation the perfect platform to discuss ongoing concerns while hearing about specific issues felt by local constituencies.

“Drop-in events like that held in June play an essential role in building those relationships between the Police Federation and local MPs,” said Nicky.

“Face-to-face engagement with politicians is crucial if we want to get our voices heard - and what’s great about drop-in events like this is, there are no cameras there, no media, it’s a space to have those honest and open conversations.

“Even if MPs don’t necessarily throw their support behind our campaigns, at least it gives us an opportunity to discuss them and raise awareness of our issues.

MEETING: (left to right) Steve Treharne (chair, South Wales Police Federation), 
MP Christina Rees and Nicky Ryan.

“And it gives Police Federation representatives the chance to hear about the concerns and issues had by members of the public too. Of course, we have our own priorities and so do MPs - it’s so easy to become tunnel-visioned with our own agendas. Having honest conversations with one another gives us all the chance to discuss both local and national issues that need to be addressed.”

Nicky says attention was specifically drawn to three ongoing campaigns including fair play, calls for the creation of an Elizabeth Medal to be awarded to the families of fallen officers and #SimplifyDG6, which highlights the need for amendments to be made to the time-consuming process involving members during the pre-charge stage of a case.

Also discussed was the ongoing Time Limits campaign, which calls for a cap on how long an allegation or complaint against a police officer can be investigated.

Nicky added: “If these MPs are going to stand up in Parliament and speak about policing, then they really need to speak to those in policing - which is where drop-in events like these prove vital.

“Hopefully those politicians who attended will take our campaigns seriously, and help drive the change we want to see.

"I'd also like to acknowledge Rt Hon David Jones for sponsoring the event. He opened with a brilliant speech, his knowledge and interest in what we are campaigning for was incredible. He had a real understanding of our concerns and issues."