Federation response to Sir Ronnie Flanagan's interim report
12 September 2007
Responding to the Interim Review of Policing published today by Sir Ronnie Flanagan, Jan Berry, chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales says:
“The Police Federation would agree with many of Sir Ronnie’s recommendations, but you could be forgiven for thinking we have been here before. In 2002 a predecessor of Sir Ronnie’s chaired a Bureaucracy Task Force that made many similar proposals. Regrettably, without the cash and political will needed many of these recommendations will fail to become a reality.”
“For years we have been calling for effective and integrated IT throughout the criminal justice system, including handheld devices and single data entry systems; all of which would improve communication, cut red tape and create a better working environment for police officers.
“If the government genuinely want to improve the situation for frontline officers then they should put their money where their mouth is. They found ring fenced cash to introduce PCSOs. That money could have been put into better technology to tackle bureaucracy and get police officers back out on the streets.”
“Sir Ronnie is right to highlight the importance of neighbourhood policing, but must be wary of focussing resources on one specific area of policing at the expense of others. In particular responding to emergency calls from the public. Our own research has highlighted unacceptable delays in response due to a lack of resources being made available. For policing to be effective there must be a balance between financing and resourcing across all strands of policing.”
“I am disappointed that the review has thus far failed to clarify the roles and responsibilities of police officers. Instead it recommends expanding the role of PCSO’s and introducing a voluntary PCSO scheme. We already have the Special Constabulary and there has been no proper assessment of the role and function of PCSO’s to date.”
For further information please contact the Police Federation of England and Wales press office on 020 8335 1000.
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