‘PM must act to improve relationship between Government and policing’
10 July 2024
Addressing the crisis in policing and committing to sustained investment in the police service should be key early priorities for the new Labour Government, according to the chair of West Mercia Police Federation.
Sir Keir Starmer secured a landslide victory in the General Election, but Federation chair Steve Butler says the new Prime Minister needs to ensure his party acts quickly to improve relations between the Government and policing.
“Police officers felt the previous Government did not value their role and, having suffered 20 per cent cuts to their pay in real terms, do not feel they are paid fairly for the real and often dangerous challenges they face while carrying out their duties,” says Steve.
“These issues were laid bare in our latest pay and morale survey in which West Mercia officers reported the second lowest levels of morale in country, second only to the Met. While some of this could be put down to local issues, 95 per cent reported they did not feel respected by the Government which is quite shocking.
“Clearly, this needs to be addressed as a matter of priority and a good starting point would be for the Prime Minister to announce the abolition of the Police Remuneration Review Body, the organisation responsible for reviewing police pay. It is not independent since the Government sets its remit and can also over-ride any recommendations it makes and therefore we have little faith in its ability to properly assess officer pay and ensure they are paid fairly.
“Police officers deserve an independent pay review body and should have access to binding arbitration.”
Labour manifesto
Labour’s election manifesto set out plans for tackling crime and anti-social behaviour including recruiting thousands of new police officers, PCSOs and Special Constables, and putting 13,000 extra neighbourhood police and PCSOs on the beat.
It also pledged to:
- Introduce tough new penalties for offenders
- Adopt a plan to get knives off the streets
- Establish a specialist rape unit in every police force
- Set up a new network of Young Futures hubs.
Steve said that while the Federation welcomed measures to boost neighbourhood policing, which was hard hit by budget cuts during the austerity years, its success was dependant on police forces being properly funded in the longer term.
Recovery
“Officer numbers were slashed during cuts to policing and we have only just got back to having the numbers we had in 2010 due to the three-year Police Uplift Programme which saw 20,000 officers recruited nationwide by the end of March 2023,” says Steve.
“But we are still recovering from those years. Our numbers have increased to pre-austerity levels but as our numbers fell the population increased along with demand for our help and the complexity of crime also evolved.
“Officers are still being pushed from pillar to post probably and there is a pressing need to invest in our estates including vehicles and equipment, plus the inadequate IT stability and systems we have at present.
“The new Government needs to get behind policing, address the pay review process, ensure officers feel valued, speak out in support of police officers to overcome what seems to have become constant negative coverage in the media and then we can all work together to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour so that we give our communities the effective policing service they want, and deserve.”
