Police driver protection has been ‘kicked down the road again’

DISCUSSIONS between police bodies and the Government, aimed at getting better protection for police response and pursuit drivers, have been ‘kicked down the road’ again according to Essex Police Federation.

Delays are threatening to undermine the good faith shown by the PFEW in its deliberations with the Government and the ‘mature and constructive’ way it’s carried out the discussions so far, said Steve Taylor, Essex Police Federation Chairman.

Currently police drivers have little protection in law and are treated the same as ordinary drivers, despite undergoing years of specialist training.

“We’re almost eight years down a path and for a while we allowed the Government to kick the can down that path,” Steve said.

“In recent times we’ve undertaken, in good faith, a series of measures aimed at bringing that legislation to bear and we’ve entered into that in good faith, namely getting ourselves into a space where the Home Office are consulting on options.

“We have a Private Members Bill, Sir Henry Bellingham’s bill, coming forward at the end of March for a bit of a crunch vote in Parliament.

“Now, there will come a point where our ability to continue to engage constructively and in a mature way with Government on this issue ceases and we have to take stock of where we are.

“My sense is that the bill the end of March could afford a natural space for us to start reviewing how we are tackling this issue. It’s not fair,” he said.

And simply blaming Brexit for the delay is too easy, he added.

“We’ve known about and have we’ve been talking about [the issues] now for eight years and yet there appears to be no great incentive, no great rush in the Government to change things.

“All too often we hear the reason for this is Brexit and capacity, and yet we see things like the coastal erosion bill and animal cruelty legislation get through.

“Where there’s a will there’s a way – are we in a space now of quite legitimately questioning the will of the Government to bring change in his area?

“We’re in that strange place now where the Government appear content with systems as they are, with the ability of the CPS to not take things forward with local checks and balances if you like.

“But it’s not fair for our members to rely on the political landscape at the time they happen to do something they’ve been trained to do. When those political winds change, they find themselves gripping the rail and it’s simply not fair for simply doing what they’ve been taught to do.”

“It’s only right and fair that we get into this place of better legislation, to protect police drivers, drivers simply doing their job to keep their communities safer, and I think we need to get there sooner than we are.”