A row has broken out between the UK government and the Police Federation over the number of police officers to be lost in Wales due to spending cuts.

The Police Federation claims the public will notice slower response times to incidents

The federation has claimed Wales would lose 1,600 officers – the equivalent of an entire police force.

Welsh chairman Jeff Mapps said: “These are police officers going from the frontline”.

The Home Office told BBC Wales the federation was scaremongering, saying fewer than half that number would go.

The Police Federation, which represents rank-and-file officers, made the claim about the scale of job cuts at its annual conference last week.

Speaking to the BBC’s Sunday Politics programme, Mr Mapps said: “We’ve clearly hit a raw nerve with the Home Office and the truth of the matter is that the truth hurts.

“They seem to celebrating the fact that 800 police officers will be lost in Wales when the truth of the matter is that we’re going to lose 1,600.

“The figures are pretty simple – a 20% cut means 1,600 cops going”.

The Home Office rubbished those claims in a statement to the programme.

“The Police Federation is scaremongering by deliberately playing fast and loose with the figures – the independent inspectorate has said fewer than 800 officers will be lost in Wales by 2015,” it said.

Jeff Mapps urged the UK government to listen to rank-and-file officers

“As a service spending £14bn a year the police must play their part in reducing the record budget deficit.”

The Home Office added that the “quality and effectiveness of policing” was not only about numbers but about “how well they are deployed.”

“Decisions about the use of available resources, including police stations, are a matter for local forces,” it said.

However, Ian Johnston, a former chief superintendent with Gwent Police, endorsed the federation’s figures and warned that crime would grow if the cuts went ahead.

“The public should be very worried,” he said.

“At a strategic level, I think we’re going to see more crime, because criminals will realise that the police officers are not there to deal with them.

“I think the public will find that police response to incidents will get slower and the police will have to start looking very very hard at what they respond to and what they don’t respond to.”

The war of words in Wales is a symptomatic of an increasingly acrimonious relationship between police and the home secretary Theresa May, who was heckled at the Police Federation’s conference in Bournemouth last week.

Mr Mapps said the federation supported a cut of 12% but said 20% was going too far.

He said: “We want to engage but we want to engage with a Government that’s listening to us and at the moment they are listening to the policing professionals.”

Police cuts: Home Office rejects claim of 1,600 jobs being lost in Wales

Senior police officer will leave after London 2012 Olympics, Scotland Yard has announced

Sue Akers, head of the Met’s inquiries into phone hacking, is to retire after the Olympics

Sue Akers, who has been leading Scotland’s Yard investigation into phone hacking, is to retire after the Olympics, the Metropolitan police has confirmed.

The Met deputy assistant commissioner has been on the force for 36 years. She is in charge of the three linked inquiries into phone hacking, illicit payments and computer hacking, and has been leading inquiries into the potential involvement of intelligence services in relation to detainees held abroad.

Deputy commissioner Craig Mackey said Akers’s extensive detective experience would be missed but her decision to step down would not be allowed to affect the progress of the investigations.

Akers, who joined the Met in 1976, took control of Operation Weeting – the force’s second inquiry into the phone-hacking scandal – in January 2011. Operations Elveden, which is focusing on inappropriate payments to police, and Tuleta, which is looking at allegations of computer hacking, run alongside.

The fresh investigation came after detectives were handed a new dossier of evidence hinting that suspicious activities at the News of the World went beyond “rogue reporter” Clive Goodman.

The now-defunct tabloid’s royal editor was jailed along with private investigator Glenn Mulcaire in 2007 after they admitted intercepting messages.

Mackey said: “Considerable resources have been dedicated to investigating phone-hacking and related offences, and the officers on these operations will continue to follow all evidence of suspected criminality.

“The importance of the continuity of leadership will of course be taken into account when the future command structure for Operations Weeting, Elveden and Tuleta is considered.”

Akers told the former Met commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson she had planned to retire after the Olympics even before the new phone-hacking investigation was launched, according to the Independent on Sunday. She is believed to be the longest-serving woman in the Met.

A Scotland Yard spokesman said: “Deputy Assistant Commissioner [DAC] Sue Akers is due to retire later this year after 36 years’ service with the MPS.

“The DAC signalled her intention to retire this autumn when she took charge of investigations into phone-hacking and related corruption and computer crime.”

Akers, the former borough commander of Barnet, was awarded the Queen’s Police Medal in 2007.

Sue Akers, phone-hacking inquiry head, to retire from Met

Nearly 9,000 serving police ­officers, including many of senior rank, are earning money from second jobs, an investigation by the The Mail on Sunday has revealed.

Evidence: Chief Inspector of Constabulary, Sir Denis O’Connor, uncovered widespread moonlighting

Policemen and women are working as part-time ski guides, waitresses and Avon ladies.

One earns cash as an Ann Summers party organiser while another is a rear commodore in a yacht club.

The revelation of the widespread use of police spare time to boost wages comes as Home Secretary Theresa May faces stiff resistance to plans for cuts to pay and ­pensions.

Last week, Mrs May was heckled at the Police Federation conference in Bournemouth where she was accused by officers of bringing in reforms that betray the rank and file.

But the figures show that about one officer in ten has a part-time job or business interest at a time when the annual bill for official police overtime has reached £382 million. 

The registers of police ­business interests identify a total of 8,669 ­second jobs. They include an officer in the Sussex force who has declared a financial interest in a gambling website and two Norfolk detectives who moonlight as mystery shoppers.

A chief superintendent from Surrey makes money from selling jewellery,  a Norfolk PC works part-time as a Royal Military Policeman while one officer from the Thames Valley force is a drone operator.

The Mail on Sunday understands the rules governing second jobs are to be tightened after criticism by the Chief Inspector of Constabulary, Sir Denis O’Connor, who has uncovered widespread evidence of moonlighting that could conflict with police duties. 

Now the Association of Chief Police Officers is drawing up tougher guidelines to restrict officers from taking on certain second jobs or working as paid consultants. 

The report, by Mike Cunningham, Chief Constable of Lancashire, is partly in response to the Leveson Inquiry into press ethics, which has exposed the overly close working relationships between police officers and the media.

Mr Cunningham will report first to the Chief Constables’ Council and then to the House of Commons Home Affairs Select Committee.

Under current regulations, officers can take a second job, provided it is compatible with their police duties and they have been given permission by a senior officer. 

But in its investigation into police corruption last year, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary, led by Sir Denis, found this authorisation process was ‘superficial and administrative’ and that there was ‘little evaluation of the business rationale, the working time implications or any inherent risks to reputation’.

Sir Denis also said that even where a second-job application was refused, there was no checking to see whether officers had ‘gone ahead and embarked on their business interest anyway’.

The greatest number of second jobbers are officers with the Metropolitan Police, where there are 3,041 declarations of business interests – nearly one in ten of the 31,000 force. 

This compares with just 444 (1.5 per cent) of London-based policemen and women who made the same ­declaration in 2005. The Met register shows there are 30 part-time masseurs in the force as well as 26 hypnotherapists. 

There are also four models, three antique ­dealers, 24 hairdressers and 48 film and television extras. Police ­constables in London can earn up to £36,519 before overtime.

These patterns of part-time working are repeated across the country. One PC with Staffordshire Police works as a model.

Northumbria Police has a constable who is also a boxer while an officer in ­Nottinghamshire is a pall- bearer at an undertaker.

Officers with Greater Manchester Police have a range of jobs, including worm-breeding and owning an off-licence.

A detective constable in ­Staffordshire also works as a magician while there is a PC at Durham who works as a chef, as well as three more who supplement their police wages as scouts for football clubs.

9,000 serving police officers have second jobs – from ski guides to Avon ladies

A PROMINENT N/Yorks councillor has pulled out of the race to be the new police commissioner for North Yorkshire and launched a scathing attack on its current police authority, condemning what he called a culture of “secrecy and suspicion” which needs to be overhauled.

Councillor Jim Clark

Coun Jim Clark, a member of Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council and chair of the North Yorkshire Health Scrutiny Committee, told the Yorkshire Post he felt there needs to be a clean sweep of the North Yorkshire Police Authority (NYPA) following the scandal-hit reign of former Chief Constable Grahame Maxwell, who stepped down this week after admitting gross misconduct, but is to receive almost a quarter of a million pounds in compensation.

Coun Clark was set to seek formal nomination for the Conservative party candidate in North Yorkshire for the commissioner elections in November, a position also likely to be challenged by police authority chairman Jane Kenyon, who is yet to rule herself out, and fellow member Carl Les who has confirmed he is considering a bid.

But last night the former senior chartered accountant told the Yorkshire Post he has now ruled himself out of the role of commissioner, to focus on other priorities.

“There are also a number of other issues but I just feel there has not been an open and transparent culture at the authority,” he said.

“I just think there needs to be a clean sweep.

“I still have a number of concerns about shortcomings in the way finance has been dealt with in our area and as a senior chartered accountant with business experience at the highest level I felt I could make considerable improvement.

“My main concern, however, was policing in my local area and following a recent meeting with senior police officers I believe my ideas for improvement and public engagement can be taken forward in my current role as a local county councillor.

“I do think commissioners are a good thing because the police authority has lost its credibility to some extent.

“This way there will be more accountability and I hope things will be more open and transparent.”

Coun Clark has also raised concerns over the election process for the new commissioners.

He added: “There is going to be such a low turn out because we have never had elections at that time before and we could finish up with somebody who is completely unprepared.”

Mr Maxwell narrowly avoided being sacked last May when he admitted gross misconduct after an inquiry found he tried to unfairly help a relative during a recruitment exercise. His request to extend his five-year fixed-term contract beyond this May was turned down last autumn by his employer, North Yorkshire Police Authority.

This week the authority confirmed Mr Maxwell will receive £247,636 – a figure described as “ridiculous” by one MP – as he was required to leave his £133,000 a year post before being able to secure the full pension entitlement available to officers after 30 years of service.

The payment is governed by nationally-agreed chief officer regulations and the authority has no option but to pay up.

Jeremy Holderness, chief executive of North Yorkshire Police Authority, reacted angrily to Coun Clark’s comments last night.

“I am quite frankly baffled by Mr Clark’s assertions that the authority has been secretive about these events,” he said.

“At every turn we have kept the media and the public informed about developments and, I think it is fair to say, have a good reputation amongst the media, and especially this newspaper, for responding to their enquiries, not only on this issue but on all others.

“Where many public authorities might seek to conceal information or use the exemption provisions of the Freedom of Information Act to do so, we have consistently not done so and applied the public interest test appropriately to disclose as much information as possible.

“I really feel that Mr Clark’s criticism is unwarranted and regret that he feels this way.”

Contenders are starting to emerge for Yorkshire’s four police commissioner posts, which are expected to carry salaries of between £70,000 and £100,000.

Lord Prescott, the former Deputy Prime Minister, is among five people seeking the Labour nomination for the Humberside force area and has already said he wants commissioners to be able to interfere in police operations.

Meredydd Hughes is seeking Labour’s nomination for the role in South Yorkshire, where he served as Chief Constable until last October.

Would-be police tsar on attack as he quits race

See: Disgraced chief constable who tried to help relative get a job is given £250,000 golden goodbye

• Graham Maxwell awarded sum due to special clause after North Yorkshire police refused to renew contract
• Disciplinary hearing heard he helped a family member jump queue of 500,000 applicants for jobs
• The 51-year-old later admitted ‘gross misconduct’

And:

North Yorkshire Police chief on gross misconduct charge

Gadget = Elected Police Commissioners – UPDATE!

Plus: Col Tim Collins quits Kent police commissioner race (he can’t spare the time…)

Government tone appears to be more conciliatory and open to suggestion, says Ian Rennie.

The General Secretary of the Police Federation has said he is optimistic that the latest set of Winsor’s recommendations will be discussed in a measured way.

Ian Rennie said that he had found the tone of ministers to be “more conciliatory” and he hoped that the negotiation process through the Police Negotiating Board would be “more effective than with the last set of proposals”.

“Let me be clear on this point – policing is not for sale.”

He told this website: “There seems to be more willingness for negotiation and I am optimistic that the process as a whole will be better this time around.”

As previously reported, the PNB first met to discuss the Winsor II recommendations on pay and remuneration in April and a working group has been set up.

The group is holding a series of meetings before the PNB convenes again in July.

Mr Rennie was speaking after addressing members of the Police Federation of England and Wales at their annual conference in Bournemouth.

He used his speech to press home the Federation’s criticism of the pay and conditions proposals, which include lower starting salaries for officers, minimum entry requirements for the Police Service and annual fitness tests.

Mr Rennie told delegates Mr Winsor had no previous experience or knowledge of the police “nor knowledge of pay systems or employee relations”.

He said the review had been carried out “by an individual who values his opinion more than others” and which “was central to the government’s ideology”.

Mr Rennie challenged the assertion in the Winsor reports that reform of the police, including the power to introduce compulsory severance, was needed because the next three decades will be more challenging than the last.

He said: “Mr Winsor states that chief constables need tools including the power to make police officers redundant because there will be less money.

“But why should the last 30 years be any more challenging than the last? There were five recessions in the last century, and three have been in the last 30 years.”

Mr Rennie went on to attack the use of large scale privatisation by some police forces, adding: “Let me be clear on this point – policing is not for sale.”

Fed Gen Sec ‘Optimistic’ On Winsor Negotiations

The public would be less likely to report a crime if a private firm was in charge of their personal data, a survey suggested.

The Unite union said the poll of more than 1,200 people in the West Midlands showed unease over a proposed £1.5bn police privatisation scheme.

The West Midlands and Surrey forces have delayed the process to bring private firms further into policing.

But West Midlands Police said the force remained “committed to the project”.

‘Breathing space’

The scheme was not aimed at outsourcing particular jobs or roles, but instead using firms’ expertise, systems and technology to transform the way forces do things, the forces have said.

Three in five of more than 1,200 people questioned would be less likely to report a crime if their personal information was being accessed by a third party, the survey showed.

The same proportion also said they were not comfortable with private firms handling 999 calls, crime detection or investigations.

Peter Allenson, Unite’s national officer, said: “West Midlands and Surrey police forces have realised that the public do not want privatisation but they have not dropped the plans altogether.

‘Very dangerous’

“They are simply buying themselves breathing space but no length of time will convince people that profit and policing are a good fit.”

He added that this was “a very dangerous move” which its survey showed “risks alienating the public from the police force that is meant to serve it”.

The two forces delayed the process to bring private companies further into policing on Thursday “to allow engagement with the market, public consultation and to allow both forces to contribute to a safe and secure Olympics”.

Surrey Chief Constable Lynne Owens said there was a need to pause for further consultation in the face of concern among officers and the public.

West Midlands Police insisted it remained “committed to exploring with the private sector the potential to transform policing and to improve services to the public”.

Union claims public unease over police privatisation

Bill clause would allow home secretary to transfer responsibility for anti-terror policing to national crime agency

Theresa May says there will be no wholesale review of the Met’s anti-terrorism role until after the Olympics.

The home secretary, Theresa May, has quietly taken powers to strip Scotland Yard of its national counter-terrorism role in the aftermath of the Olympics.

The move, which could lead to counter-terrorism policing being assigned to the new national crime agency (NCA) after it is set up next April, is contained in an enabling clause in the crime and courts bill, which is to be given a second reading in the House of Lords on Monday 28 May.

The 2,000-strong counter-terrorism command of the Metropolitan police was created in 2006 but has its roots in the early 1970s when the anti-terrorist branch and the “bomb squad” was set up to counter the threat from anarchist groups, such as the Angry Brigade, as well take part in the campaign against the IRA.

The home secretary has publicly said that no wholesale review of the future of the Met’s anti-terrorism role will be undertaken until after the Olympics but there is growing belief within Scotland Yard that a firm view already exists within the Home Office.

The national crime agency will include separate commands covering organised crime, border policing, economic crime and child exploitation. It will also include the national cybercrime unit and will for the first time have a national police intelligence role with the authority to “task” other police forces and law enforcement agencies.

Clause two of the crime and courts bill gives the home secretary the power to transfer counter-terrorism functions to the NCA by making an order. The enabling clause specifically rules out any NCA officers conducting operations in Northern Ireland without the express agreement of the chief constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland.

A decision to remove such a key national function from the Met is likely to fundamentally change the nature of the force. Cressida Dick, the assistant commissioner in charge of the Met’s specialist operations, which includes the counter-terrorism command, holds a higher rank than Keith Bristow, the Warwickshire chief constable, who is due to become the head of the national crime agency when it is set up next April.

A Home Office spokesman said: “The government has been clear that decisions on the future of counter-terrorism policing will not be taken until after the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games and the NCA is fully established.”

The possibility that the home secretary would seek parliamentary approval for the power to strip Scotland Yard of this role was first set out in the Home Office’s plan for the national crime agency that it published last year. Home Office sources said that it simply negates the need for primary legislation should a decision be taken in future.

John Graham, director of the Police Foundation, an independent criminal justice thinktank, said counter-terrorism work was one of the things that the Met did extremely well. But he said that it took up a large share of resources and if the force were no longer responsible it might lead to an improved performance in its other roles.

Graham added that those setting up the NCA were already “running to catch up” and had a lot of work to do to prepare it for the functions already assigned to it.

Some senior Scotland Yard sources are concerned at the possible disruption to the existing working relationships between the Met and MI5, the regional special branch network, and other police forces. But it is understood that the Met police commissioner, Bernard Hogan-Howe, is relaxed about whether the move goes ahead or not.

Theresa May takes powers to strip Met of counter-terrorism role

• Follows prosecution of a PC for dangerous driving even though no complaint was made

Police officers chasing speeding criminals are too frightened to put their foot down for fear of being prosecuted for dangerous driving.

Yesterday the Police Federation said hundreds of officers around the country were worried about undertaking high speed pursuits due to the risk of them being hauled before the courts.

The Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer, QC, is now carrying out an urgent review after the Federation warned that officers could refuse to pursue fugitives, burglars, carjackers and other dangerous offenders if the law on dangerous driving is not changed to provide exemptions for 999 emergencies.

Police officers chasing speeding criminals are too frightened to put their foot down for fear of being prosecuted for dangerous driving

The extraordinary move comes after the prosecution of a police patrol officer for dangerous driving even though no complaint was made about his driving and no members of the public were injured.

PC James Holden was following a serial burglar who raced through several red lights and went the wrong way along a section of dual carriageway before his stolen van crashed through a railway barrier in Cosham, Hampshire.

No one was injured and the officer from Hampshire Constabulary stopped the pursuit before he reached the railway barrier.

The thief who ran from the scene was caught by another patrol on the other side of the railway.

The Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer, QC, is now carrying out an urgent review

Despite no complaints being made, senior officers, who routinely review police pursuits, deemed that the chase had gone on too long and had put lives and properties at risk.

An independent review by another force expert described PC Holden’s driving as ‘admirable’, ‘not careless, reckless or dangerous’ and ‘typical of an urban pursuit’.

However Hampshire Police referred the case to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) who decided to prosecute the officer for dangerous driving.

After just two hours of deliberations, a jury cleared the constable of any wrongdoing at Guildford Crown Court in February this year.

But the landmark case has raised fears that dozens of other police patrol officers could face prosecution simply for trying to catch a fleeing criminal.

More than a hundred rank and file officers have contacted the Police Federation to say they are worried about putting their foot down when chasing an offender.

There are also fears that the case could deter surveillance teams from tailing terrorist suspects in the run-up to the Olympics if the officers feel that they are vulnerable to prosecution.

Paramedics and firefighters have also expressed concerns about the case.

Mr Starmer is now carrying out a review of CPS guidance after the case was raised Sir Hugh Orde, head of the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO).

The national ACPO lead on police driving Assistant Chief Constable Andy Holt has also written to all chief constables regarding a review of the legislation.

Yesterday Chairman of the Hampshire Police Federation John Apter said: ‘In some cases police officers are saying I do not want to go through what PC Holden went through just for doing my job.

‘I am not going to put my foot down.’ He went on: ‘Some officers have decided that the risk to them is not worth it. I understand that position.

‘You are trained to do a job and if you do it you are worried about gripping a rail in a dock.’

Mr Apter stressed that the federation was not calling for an total exemption on prosecution for police officers, but that it was necessary to provide allowances for 999 emergencies.

He said: ‘I think that the reality is if nothing is done, police officers will lose faith in the system.

‘If police officers lose faith and do not feel they have any support, they will minimise the risks to themselves.

‘I can see officers refusing to pursue which would be very sad for the police and for the public- it would be Christmas for criminals.’

Currently members of the emergency services have no special exemption from prosecution when responding to 999 calls, they owe the same duty of care as a member of the public.

But yesterday Mr Starmer said: ‘A number of concerns have been raised with me about the case of PC Holden.

‘I do not propose to comment on the case itself, but I have decided that CPS policy guidance in relation to dangerous driving should be reviewed, including the way in which it is applied to members of the emergency services.

‘The CPS will consult with the police before finalising the revised policy guidance.’

Police afraid car chases will land them in court are avoiding high-speed pursuit of criminals

See also: End of the road for police pursuits?

And: Hampshire Police Federation criticises PC pursuit case

Home Secretary Theresa May has rejected an accusation of a conflict of interest in Lincolnshire Police’s decision to award a £200m contract to G4S.

The home secretary said Mr Winsor was “entirely independent”

At the Police Federation conference, Mrs May was asked about Tom Winsor, a partner of a law firm which advised the security company on the deal.

In 2010, Mr Winsor was appointed by the government to author an independent report on police reform.

Mrs May told the conference there was no overlap between Mr Winsor’s roles.

In February, Lincolnshire Police agreed a deal to pay G4S £200m over 10 years to deliver a range of services, including human resources, finance and IT.

Mr Winsor, whose review proposed changes in how the police are paid, is a partner at White and Case but the firm said he played no part in its work advising G4S.

Before joining the firm Mr Winsor spent five years as a rail regulator.

‘Vested interest’

The home secretary was asked about his appointment by delegate Sarah Adams at the conference in Bournemouth.

Ms Adams said: “When you appointed Tom Winsor to carry out your independent review of policy, did you know that the law firm Tom Winsor is part of, which is White and Case, was negotiating the multi-million groundbreaking deal for G4S with Lincolnshire Police?

“How can it be fair and independent if there’s a vested interest?”

Mrs May said: “Tom Winsor did his review entirely independently. He did not do that review as part of the firm – he did it as an individual.

“You might not like all the answers that came out of the Winsor Review but there is a process whereby the federation’s voice will be heard in response to these proposals.”

‘No contact’

Barry Young, chairman of Lincolnshire Police Authority, agreed there had been no conflict of interest.

He said: “My understanding is the work he’s done for the government in relation to his report on pay and conditions was as Tom Winsor and not the firm White and Case. I see no conflict of interest whatsoever.”

A spokesperson for White and Case said: “The firm rejects any suggestion of a conflict of interest between Tom Winsor’s independent police pay review and any of the firm’s clients.

“The police pay review was undertaken by Mr Winsor in his personal capacity and who was appointed, in such capacity as an impartial reviewer, by the home secretary.”

A spokesperson for G4S said: “There has been absolutely no conflict of interest: Mr Winsor has not been involved in any capacity with the legal team which advised us on our contract with Lincolnshire Police.

“Furthermore no member of the G4S policing team has even had contact with Mr Winsor.”

Theresa May denies conflict of interest in Lincolnshire Police deal