Officers Could Be Set For Another Meagre Pay Rise

POLICE officers in Essex might only get a 1.3% pay rise if the Home Office confirms it is to set aside £70m for police salaries in 2019/20.

The figure, which would pre-judge any pay proposal put forward by the Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB), speaks volumes of the disdain the Government has for the independent body, according to Essex Police Federation.

Chairman Steve Taylor says policing must try and retain faith in the system but says officers’ pay packets are continuing to wither.

He said: “Our members want and deserve more equitable pay, and as their staff association it’s our job to lobby for that.

“It also speaks of the disdain and disregard that this Government has for the PRRB, which is grossly unfair. The current system was brought in to replace a system that held the Government more to account, and the Government do not, in good faith, enter that.

“We can make the best submissions that we possibly can but as we’ve seen on two previous occasions, the Home Secretaries appear to do what they want to do anyway.

“How often are the PRRB going to be dismissed by this Government before they take action? What action can they take as an independent body?

“As a Federation, we can take our stance and we can make our feelings known. We can lobby our local MP and they will agree that officers do deserve more, but [they will say] public funds are in such a state that that’s not readily available.

“It’s the line that they’ve been trotting out ever since we’ve been in these austere times. So, expecting anything to change there might be naïve on our part.”

The PFEW has launched a judicial review into how last year’s pay review was handled by the Home Office, something which Essex Police Federation is hopeful might bring about a change in behaviour.

Steve added: “We look towards the judicial review that the PFEW is bringing against the Home Secretary and how they’ve dealt with previous pay reviews.

“Against that backdrop, we’re hopeful that that’s going to elicit a change of behaviour. But we hear these anecdotal rumours that they’re going to cap it at £70m, cap it to 1.3% increase.

“While I’m not surprised, I’m bitterly disappointed that yet again there’s a significant lack of good faith from the Government when we enter into these pay review body descriptions.”