Will it be a Good or Bad if there is less Police Officers?
Following the budget cuts in public spending there is speculation that the numbers of police officers will have to be reduced. It is expected that the President of the Association of Chief Police Officers Sir Hugh Orde will tell a conference it is "misleading in the extreme to claim otherwise”. Full story on: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/10442823.stm
Reducing the numbers of police officers is very controversial as the public generally think that we are safer when there are more police officers on the beat. For many people they feel very reassured when they see police officers walking the streets and patrolling in police cars. However there is a point of few that much of the work that police officers do is administrative and that it could be streamlined and some of it could be done by civilian workers.
There are also worries that as the government start the process of cutting jobs particularly in the public sector there is the possibility of demonstrations and even civil unrest. At such times it is essential to have a full compliment and motivated police force.
The home secretary is also set to announce plans to cut police bureaucracy by scrapping Labour's 10-point policing pledge, which includes commitments to respond quickly to calls and keep victims informed about their case. As in many other public services the government is considering removing targets and concentrating resources on quality of service. More details will also be requested at the conference about plans to introduce locally elected police commissioners and how that will work. Currently each police force is answerable to a non elected local police board made up a range of people from the local community.
One of the issues related to the cost of the police force is the cost of pensions. Police officers pay 9% of their salary into their pension fund and can retire in their 50s. The cost of public sector pensions is being widely debated at the moment as the budget cuts hit more and more people. Those working in the public sector such as the police say they have accepted lower pay rises and can work in difficult conditions and that their pensions make up for the lower salaries.
Let us know what you think:
Is there a good case for reducing the numbers of police officers?
What do you think would be effects of cutting police numbers?
Could more of the administrative work of the police force be done by people other than police officers?
How will removing targets and making changes to public sector pensions improve and/or make services worse?