Bobbies may not always be there to save lives, warns chairman

Mark Smith, chairman of the federation, said officers were saving lives and going above and beyond their duties “daily”. But he warned that it was a “genuine possibility” that officers will, at times, no longer be there to help members of the public as numbers drastically fall. 

Estimating that 1,300 officers will be lost from the force in total, Mr Smith said: “Unfortunately, if our resources are constantly tied up, one of the things we may stop doing is actually being there to help, at times.”

Mr Smith said that agencies or hospitals responsible for vulnerable people will need to “step up a bit” and ensure they look after those in their care.

“If these people that we are helping are maybe suffering from mental health issues, or maybe being seen by hospitals, hospitals now need to start taking control and looking after these people, because we might not be there to save them,” he said.

The chairman was speaking after several Essex Police officers were awarded chief constable’s commendations for savings the lives of members of the public.

Mr Smith said: “I’m proud of our officers in Essex, and I’m proud of policing in this country because it’s what we’ve always done, it’s what we’re here for, to protect the public.

“Crime fighting is part of our job, but it’s also protecting the public, and that’s a major thing that we do.

“And I’m very proud to be a police officer because that’s what we joined for, what I joined for and what everybody else joined for, to protect the public.”