General Policing Issues

Joe Grant, General Secretary, comments on David Cameron's speech on police reform

David Cameron's speech on police reform in London yesterday (160106) organised by Crime Concern, dealt wholly with policing in England and Wales and rightly so as policing is a devolved matter. However, some of what he said raised a great deal of concern and consternation amongst police officers and others with an interest in policing in Scotland as many of our terms and conditions are negotiated on a UK wide basis.

 

The media chose to focus largely on his “tough on crime, tough on police reform” statements as he surely knew they would. His statements that it was difficult to sack bad officers and that underperforming officers were “almost un-sackable” were simply inaccurate. Anyone with even a basic understanding of the Conduct Regulations and the Efficiency Regulations would tell you this is wrong. But why he chose to focus on what can only be a miniscule number of police officers escapes me. It is an insult to the 99.99% of police officers who do a magnificent job everyday of their working lives. He needs a new advisor in my view.

 

He said new employment contracts and other reforms were required to improve the 25% crime clear-up rate. In Scotland , we have a 45% crime clear-up rate but we are neither complacent nor opposed to reform. Pay and conditions are constantly under review and in fact many of his proposals for pay links to skills, competence and performance are either already in place or being considered at this time. Providing these reforms do not de-motivate and divide, or shift the focus from team-work to individual financial gain, and do not create a huge bureaucracy, then we may very well see some major pay reforms in these areas in the very near future.

 

Many of Mr Cameron's other comments about structure and accountability are only relevant to England and Wales but the Scottish Police Federation is not opposed to change of any kind designed to improve service delivery. If a call for fundamental reform in these areas were made in Scotland then an examination of the purpose of policing and the policing strategy would be necessary first. Structure before purpose and strategy would amount to no more than potentially expensive and disastrous tinkering.