Clause 35 - Police powers for police authority employees
Police Reform Bill [Lords]
10:45 pm
Mr John Denham (Minister of State (Police, Courts and Drugs), Home Office; Southampton, Itchen, Labour)
Let us take detention officers. There is a debate in the police service about CSOs. The Metropolitan police force is particularly committed to them, other forces are keen to develop them, some are less convinced and certain chief constables are opposed to them. There is nothing like that debate among those running our police forces about the other duties covered by schedule 4—those of detention officers, escort officers and investigating officers. However, the hon. Gentleman's lead amendment effectively seeks to make it impossible to use officers designated under schedule 4 for detention purposes.
Many forces wish to use officers in such ways. Cheshire constabulary has suggested that, with alternative approaches to escort duties, it could free the equivalent of 15 officers to front-line duties. Cleveland force is looking to free 23 officers, and the police bureaucracy task force, which is due to complete its work at the end of July, has indicated that the equivalent of about 6,650 full-time officers a year are tied up dealing with prisoners in police stations. Faced with that commitment of police officer resources, it is sensible for the measures in schedule 4 to be used by properly trained, designated officers who are employed by the police service and accountable to the chief constable, and for the exercise of whose duties the chief constable is responsible. There are policing functions that do not need the full powers and expertise of a police officer. Those listed here can be carried out satisfactorily by fully-trained support staff with appropriate limited powers.