CBI Report
Today the CBI has launched a report that amongt other things calls for a freeze in the police pay budget and advocates performance related pay. Please see immediately below the Police Federation response and below that the CBI statement. PFEW Vice-Chairman, Simon Reed, has this morning done interviews on BBC Radio 4 Today programme, 5-Live and BBC Radio Wales.
Forwarded for your information.
POLICE FEDERATION STATEMENT
POLICE FEDERATION RESPONSE TO CBI REPORT - A FRONTLINE FORCE: PROPOSALS FOR MORE EFFECTIVE POLICING
Responding to the publication of the CBI Report, A Frontline Force: Proposals for more effective policing, Paul McKeever, Chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, says:
"This CBI report is a double edged sword. On the one hand it contains many sensible recommendations for improving efficiency that we have been calling for, such as improved collaboration, joint procurement and rationalising backroom functions. Yet on the other hand it contains several ill-informed suggestions focussed purely on cost-cutting, namely, hiving off parts of the service for the benefit of private companies that the CBI represents and not for the greater good of the public.
"The CBI is right to identify that there are many services that can be shared between forces; some time ago we raised concern that there are currently 43 different procurement processes for purchasing uniforms or police vehicles. That makes no sense at all; we would therefore welcome a national procurement strategy. Likewise, if there are some backroom functions that do not need police officers, we would encourage chief officers to put more police officers back on the street.
"However, where this biased report falls down, is its ethos that policing can be treated as a business. Policing is a public service; and unlike private business we cannot pick and choose what to do. We exist to serve the public, not shareholders. The organisations the CBI represents have the luxury of deciding something is not cost effective and therefore they are not going to do it anymore. The police service is there to serve all communities and meet an increasing range of demands. We cannot walk away if protecting the public becomes too expensive.
"As for performance related pay - this may suit the private sector, but how do you determine the pay for a neighbourhood team police officer whose mere presence deters an un-recordable number of crimes? Is the CBI suggesting we reintroduce more targets and officers will then be judged by how many arrests they make, or how many victims they see, irrespective of the quality of service given? The current pay structure is designed to take account of the variety of tasks that multi-skilled police officers undertake, whether policing inner cities or rural areas.
"I do wonder whether the CBI may better spend its time getting its own house in order before looking to the police. What next? The Association of Chief Police Officers drafting proposals for more effective banking?"
ENDS
CBI STATEMENT
FREEING POLICE FROM BACK OFFICE TASKS COULD PUT MORE BOBBIES ON BEAT - CBI
The CBI is calling for more police forces to share back office functions, including human resources and IT, and for greater private-sector involvement in providing support services, such as running custody suites. Since these services do not require warranted officers, this would boost the number available for frontline duties and save money.
In a new report, A Frontline Force: Proposals for more effective policing, the UK's leading business group argues that a major overhaul in the way police services are delivered is needed in order to maintain frontline services as Government budgets cuts start to bite.This should include greater collaboration between forces to allow them to pool resources and share back office; joint procurement for uniforms and other equipment to secure bulk discounts; and allowing independent providers to deliver support services that do not need warranted officers.The report includes examples of forces already collaborating to good effect.
For example, South Wales Police has employed a private firm to run its custody services, including finger-printing and delivering meals. This has saved £1.2m a year and freed up 53 officers for frontline duties. Extending this kind of partnership across England and Wales could save around £45m a year and strengthen frontline policing.
As well as greater collaboration, steps should be taken to support forces wishing to merge by removing financial barriers. Since staff costs account for around 80% of police spending,smarter ways of working to raise productivity also need to be introduced.
For example, forces sharing resources to meet peaks in demand. There also needs to be a shift from the 'time served' pay system to one linked to individual pay and performance.
John Cridland, CBI Deputy Director-General, said:"The public sector investment boom of recent years is coming to an end just at a time when our police forces are facing increasing pressure to fight terrorism and sophisticated computer fraud.
"There is considerable scope for the police to find savings without compromising frontline policing. But this will require a major re-think of what we expect the police to do. Does a highly-qualified warranted police officer really need to be the first port of call for someone reporting an item of lost property?
"We believe that the time has come to liberate police officers from back office and administrative duties and allow them to concentrate on what they do best - fighting crime and protecting the public.
"Some forces are already increasing their purchasing power by joining together to buy uniforms and cars, and sharing services from human resources to helicopters. Others are making good use of private sector partnerships in non-frontline roles. Our report shows that the enormous potential for widening collaboration and the role of the private sector to assist policing.
"The CBI's recommendations for ensuring the number of frontline police officers is maintained while saving money include:·
Mandating collaboration between police forces and tasking a single body to ensure a coordinated approach. This would build on successful examples of collaboration already taking place. For example, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire forces pool officers and budgets to investigate major crimes, while the Metropolitan Police share the human resources function across London's 32 boroughs.·
A national procurement strategy to encourage forces to buy uniforms and vehicles in bulk. For example, Kent & Essex police's joint procurement department has saved around £3m since 2007.·
Sharing back office services and identifying services suitable for delivery by alternative providers. For example, a joint venture between Avon and Somerset Constabulary, two county councils and IBM called Southwest One provides shared services for back office, administration and benefits. It is expected to produce savings of up to £200m over the next 10 years. Meanwhile, G4S Secure Solutions provided extra security services to the Metropolitan Police throughout the G20 Summit in 2009.·
Developing smarter ways of working to increase productivity and reduce costs. For example, Norfolk Constabulary has changed shift patterns to better match resources to demand.· Reforming police pay to ensure salary and career progression is linked to the outcomes of performance and development reviews. The total police pay bill should also be frozen. This is not the same as a pay freeze for individual officers and pay rises could still be awarded, but the costs should be offset elsewhere so that the overall pay bill does not increase.·
Introducing a new non-urgent telephone number to run alongside the current 999 service for police, ambulance, fire and health services. This could operate in a similar way to the NHS Direct telephone service and could handle the 70% of non-urgent calls currently made to 999. This could save £1m a year for each partner.
ENDS
Metin Enver
Head of Communications
Police Federation of England and Wales
