Acting National Chair opens very first FedConnect

21 November 2024

Tiff Lynch looks back at recent challenges faced by members and highlights the work the Federation has been doing at a local and national level to support them.

Good morning. I am Tiff Lynch, Acting National Chair of the Police Federation of England and Wales. Thank you for joining us today for what is the very first FedConnect.

This event is an opportunity to hear from you first-hand about the issues that matter to you – pay, pensions, resources, welfare, and more. And a chance for you to ask us questions too.

A warm welcome to those officers who have been able to join us here today at our headquarters for this event, and an equally warm welcome for the many officers and staff who are watching online. Please do get involved. Have your say and ask questions. We will do our best to cover as many question as we possibly can in the time.

Before I remind you of today’s agenda and we hear from our first speakers, I just want to take a moment to look back at some recent challenges, and to outline some of the work your Federation has been doing, with local and national reps working together.

The last few years have been very difficult – difficult for policing as we see demands increase, and difficult for us at the Police Federation as we address mistakes of the past and make sure we are fit for the future

Today is an opportunity to cover all of this with you. A chance to get your views and to tell you how these translate to our priorities for 2025 and beyond.

Also, an opportunity to explain the transformation agenda we are pursuing internally, to ensure that we can offer you the very best representation for the future.

Just a few months ago a new Government was elected to power.

Within days, Yvette Cooper was appointed to the post of Home Secretary. In fact, her very first engagement was hosting police officers from forces across England and Wales at 10 Downing Street as part of our Police Bravery Awards.

Only this week the Home Secretary announced her vision for policing and plans to consult on it early next year.

At first sight, it appears that positive steps will be taken to reform and drive better efficiency and consistency across forces.

We will play an active part in the consultation to share your experiences of what works and what doesn't work. And government must be cautious that they don't drive policing back to a culture of what gets counted gets done, and force league tables.

While in Opposition, Yvette Cooper, showed herself to be someone who would listen to concerns we raise on your behalf and to take an active interest in policing issues.

We hope that the demands of the role won’t see a reduction in that interest and appetite to get a view from the rank and file.

I appreciate the government has its own challenges – not least financial challenges as it implements its manifesto commitments. But on your behalf, we are making clear that the difficult, demanding, and dangerous job that you do, deserves fair recognition and that includes fair reward.

We have made clear our concerns about the Police Pay Review Body – the PRRB. We strongly believe the current pay mechanism is flawed, when the government can set the parameters for what the pay review body may consider, and then government isn’t bound by the pay review body recommendations.

That said, the new government did accept in full this year’s pay recommendation, which landed in your pay packets from 1 September. This was a positive sign.

But moving forward, we believe a much fairer system to negotiate your pay is one that involves collective bargaining.

In June, we ran a membership poll. Over 50,000 of you responded and your message to us was clear – 98 per cent of you told us that you want some form of collective bargaining for pay, and binding arbitration.

There will be more on this later today in the pay and conditions session, being led by the National Secretary’s office. But let me assure you – there has been much work ongoing as to how collective bargaining could look. This includes whether the current pay review system could allow some form of negotiation, rather than merely taking evidence from organisations.

We have made very clear to government that the restrictions on your lives – both professional and personal – and your inability to take industrial action, must be recognised. And this means having a fair pay mechanism that you can have confidence in.

Colleagues – you know better than anyone that policing is always under the spotlight.

Our daily successes not often capturing the headlines. But when something is perceived to go wrong, then out come the armchair critics, who take to the media to analyse and berate. And sadly, within this group, we often see politicians – people who really should stick to the facts, rather than just offer opinion.

We have had an enormous task in recent years, to win back public confidence and trust, following a number of high-profile cases, where individuals who were never fit to wear a uniform, were thrown out of the job – and in some cases, even convicted of criminal offences.

Regrettably, these cases have shaken public confidence and reflected badly on the many tens of thousands of police officers doing their very best in extremely trying circumstances.

Nationally and locally, the Federation has been pushing the good news stories – to media, to politicians, and to the public.

We have all played our part to help to restore that confidence. Not to shy away from saying what is wrong, when officers are run ragged, or struggling to get from one job to the next – but highlighting this and suggesting solutions to the problems you face.

Working together, the national office and local Federations, have been meeting MPs from all your force areas.

We have been making clear to them that policing needs their support.

That doesn’t mean agreeing with everything we say - but it does mean taking a step back and not jumping on a populist bandwagon just to get a local headline or a clip for their social media accounts.

It means taking the time to understand what happened and why – to put themselves in your shoes for one moment, and then translate that back to their constituents.

I have been appalled at some of the things I have seen on social media following the exoneration of the officer known as NX121, after the trial into the shooting of Chris Kaba.

Not taking away from the pain and heartache that Chris Kaba’s family continue to live with, officer NX121 was found not guilty in court. Yet, he and his family have endured, and continue to endure, absolute hell because of being publicly named in court.

It’s time that elected politicians respected the decision of the judicial system. References to police officers being above the law are wrong and inflammatory, and they must stop.

Last month, the government announced its own plans to help restore confidence in the police. This follows the long-awaited accountability review and draws on findings of the Casey and Angiolini reviews.

Following representations made by the Police Federation, we were pleased to see that one recommendation to be implemented is a presumption of anonymity for firearms officers facing criminal proceedings following police shootings, up until the point of a conviction.

This is the right and fair thing to do.

We are just a few weeks away from hearing what next year’s police financial settlement will be.

This is the amount of money that every police force will receive, both from national government and through local taxation in the council tax precept.

As well as favourable working conditions, we want to ensure that you have the very best kit, uniform and equipment. Yet, when it comes to procurement, your chiefs’ hands are tied – only ever knowing what money they have coming in for the following 12 months.

This is why we have been pressing government to introduce a multi-year settlement. One that allows chief officers to plan with confidence and to get the best deals possible. And one that means that chiefs don’t find themselves in the invidious position of having to look towards their people to cut costs.

You know only too well how cuts to police staff impacts on our ability to perform our role and deliver the best service possible to our communities.

I just want to touch on one more point before we begin – and that is the Police Covenant.

I don’t know how much you’ll know of the Police Covenant, and to be honest, you’d be forgiven for not knowing much.

Introduced in in 2022, the covenant aims to ensure that members, or former members of the police workforce in England and Wales, are not disadvantaged as a result of working in policing.

In practical terms the covenant will aim to improve the working experience of people in policing, and provide support to officers’ families too.

The principle of the Covenant was something the Police Federation supported, and indeed continues to support. But we want to see it make a positive and tangible difference to your lives, and at this stage, I regret to say, we are unsure it is achieving all it set out to deliver.

So, we are getting around the table with those who lead on this vitally important initiative to push for something meaningful for you and your families.

Colleagues, I am aware that much of what we do at the Federation, locally and nationally, goes unreported or is unseen. But, like you, we are getting on with the job.

You’ll appreciate that, whether negotiating changes to working conditions at a national or local level, much of the detail cannot be publicised during the negotiation itself.
Like you, we do our very best – we don’t always get it right and when that happens, we learn and put in place processes and procedures to minimise organisational risk moving forward.

That is exactly what is happening internally now – the Police Federation is in the process of a transformation programme to ensure that we are match fit to deliver a first-class service for you and the future police officers of tomorrow.

More to come on this later today too. Which leads me neatly on to today’s agenda.

All the sessions are about policing under pressure – whether that be external pressures we all face, or internal pressures.

In the first session we are going to look at the NX121 case. Then we are looking at Operation Navette and the police response to the summer disorder.

Before our late morning break, we have a session looking at policing and the media.

Following our break, I am pleased to say we are being joined by Shadow Home Secretary, Chris Philp, who was the Policing Minister in the last government.

Before the lunch break, we have a session on pay and conditions, and after the break we begin with a session on the Police Federation transformation agenda.

And then finally, we end the day with a Question Time session.

Details of panel members and speakers are in your agenda.

Colleagues - I conclude as I began.

This is your event. Your opportunity to tell us what you think of the important issues facing policing.

Please do get involved and enjoy the day.

Thank you.