12 April 2012

‘Enough is enough’

Since the second part of Tom Winsor’s review of police pay and conditions was published on 15 March 2012 we have been trying to properly analyse its contents and assess the impact implementation of these recommendations would have for Derbyshire officers.

Before outlining my concerns about some of the proposals, I would like to emphasise that we are not opposed to change. Within the police service we have always been willing to reform and have repeatedly asked for a Royal Commission on policing which would allow a comprehensive root and branch study of the police service rather than the piecemeal approach adopted by the current Government.

With the Winsor 2 report, there are a number of headline recommendations that concern me, however, that is not to say that there are some proposals that could be beneficial for the police service.

But the main bones of contention as I see them are:-

• Direct entry to candidates at inspector and superintendent level. I have always been against this as I see a police constable as the cornerstone of our policing service. It is difficult to make sound operational decisions when you have never performed this role. After all, most of the work within communities is done by constables. Put yourself in the position of a direct entry superintendent in charge of dealing with riots in Derby. Having never run with the shield for long periods or faced an avalanche of bricks, how can they begin to understand the mindset of officers in that position?


• Redundancy. The police officer role has always been as a servant of the crown not an employee. This gave us restrictions on our private lives, inability to take industrial action but also ensured we could not be made redundant. We cannot be a member of a political organisation ensuring we maintain a service free from political interference, how ironic! It appears that Winsor’s report brings us into the realms of an employee. This has rekindled the thoughts of some officers who believe we should go through the European Courts of Human Rights to call for full industrial rights, including the right to strike. This is something few of us want although criminals may be very happy.


• Fitness tests. I feel that every officer being asked to take an annual fitness test from 2018 is fair and can be expected. However, every officer taking a test from September 2014 leaves officers who are injured and/or unfit little time to get themselves ready for the test. Winsor also proposes to use any failure as a means of reducing officers salary by £3,000. I have to ask whether he actually wants a fit police service or is he happy to have an unfit service that costs less?


• Retirement at 60. Would you really want your Dad or Grandad of 59 rolling about in Derby city centre with drunken youths or stood behind a shield as described above?


• Lower starting pay for new constables. Current market forces enable any organisation, whether public or private, to lower its starting salary as the uptake will still be great. The fact that Winsor retains the maximum salary and it can be reached within shorter timescales cannot be sniffed at but I have yet to go into the detail of this proposal and, if previous Winsor recommendations are anything to go by, there will be some monetary reason why this cannot happen in reality.


• Increased qualifications to gain entry e.g. three A levels. In my experience the main qualification to be a police officer is the ability to use common sense and communicate with our community. Three A levels or a degree do not prove you have the strength of character to deal with some of the issues officers face on a daily basis. These range from helping children across the road to picking up the pieces at a fatal accident.
  

We must remember these are still recommendations but if they follow the same process as Winsor 1 most of them will become part of the police service.

Police officers are currently thinking. We’ve already made a significant contribution to tackle the national debt; we’ve seen a minimum 20 per cent cut to the police budget; the loss of 16,000 police officers expected over the next four years; £300 million removed from police pay; increased pension contributions; a two-year public sector pay freeze and then a capped one per cent increase in years three and four. How much more are police officers expected to take?

Police officers have had enough of the constant state of uncertainty and the deliberate, sustained attack on them by this Government. They want to get on with the job they joined to do, serving their communities, and they expect the support of Government. Instead they find themselves contending with cuts to pay and conditions of service, increased stress and pressures, falling numbers of police officers, low morale and the privatisation of essential police functions. Despite a growing list of demands and the reality of the cuts, they are doing their very best, but they know the Government cuts are jeopardising public safety and the quality of service they are able to provide. The service cannot take anymore; enough is enough.

Mark Pickard
Chairman
Derbyshire Police Federation