“No new money” to pay for increased south east allowance

THE maximum allowance for police officers in the south east of England will rise by £1,000 from 1 September, but the increase is at the discretion of individual forces.

The Home Office accepted the Police Remuneration Review Body’s recommendation for the rise earlier this month.

In Essex, it will be up to Chief Constable Stephen Kavanagh (pictured) to decide whether the allowance should increase from £2,000 to £3,000.

Essex Police Federation Chairman Mark Smith has spoken to Mr Kavanagh and Police and Crime Commissioner Roger Hirst informally, to say that he would like to see members given the higher south east allowance.

However, Mr Smith acknowledged that “there is no new money” to pay for it.

“It’s got to come out of the force budget, so I don’t know how many millions it’s going to cost,” said Mr Smith. “If it means a loss of more frontline officers then that’s a very, very hard decision and one that I would probably have to back the chief on and say: ‘No, we can’t lose any more’.”

To increase the allowance, chief constables would be expected to show “firm evidence” of recruitment and retention issues, as well as local affordability.

“If they can find the money from elsewhere without losing frontline officers then I’ll be pushing for the south east allowance to go up in Essex,” said Mr Smith. “But it is a difficult one.”

Other forces eligible to increase the allowance to £3,000 include Thames Valley Police, Surrey, Kent and Hertfordshire. Bedfordshire, Hampshire and Sussex can increase their allowance from a maximum of £1,000 to £2,000.