Officers urged to vote for next national Federation chair

15 March 2022

Federation branch chair Rich Cooke is urging West Midlands officers to exercise their vote to choose the next national chair of the Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW).

Three contenders hat put their hats in the ring for to become the figurehead of the organisation on 1 April – they are West Yorkshire branch chair Brian Booth, the current national vice-chair Ché Donald and National Board member Steve Hartshorn.

Rich explains: “Policing is under pressure like never before – with ever increasing workloads and a hostile press. We’re seeing our pay eroded by this Government and our ability to secure a fair deal undermined at every turn, so there are big challenges facing the next national chair and I would urge members to vote for who they feel can best represent them on the national stage and with the Government.”

Members will already be receiving instructions in the email inbox on how to cast their vote and can contact the West Midlands branch if they need assistance.

Brian says he wants to embolden the Police Federation and “consign the ‘toothless tiger’ name to history”. As West Yorkshire’s chair, he says he already has experience of running a large Federation and has always set the tone of putting members first.

His four promises if elected are to listen to members, to get on the front foot in media, to empower the National Board to hold the executive to account, and “have fire in our bellies”, adding: “I’ll stick up for hard-working officers - using every tool at my disposal to highlight the challenges and dangers brave colleagues face every day to keep the public safe, even in the face of political and press attacks.”

Ché, a Sussex sergeant, has been the Federation’s vice-chair since 2018 and argues that he has the “skills, experience, and relationships” to hit the ground running.

“The police service is all things to all people, and policing survives on your blood, sweat, tears and goodwill,” he says, “But years of eroding our pay and pensions has eroded that goodwill. As your national chair, I would want an open and frank discussion with you about what we, as a service and as officers, should and shouldn’t be doing.”

Steve is the Federation’s lead for firearms and Taser, and a Metropolitan Police officer since 1995. An early supporter of the Pension Challenge, he says police officers “must be treated fairly and allowed to do our job free from party politics and a severe lack of funding.”

He argues there is a disconnect between the membership, the National Board and the chair’s office currently, and promises to be a unifying force. “I want negotiation rights and binding arbitration that ensures policing gets a fair deal,” he says.