Clause 46 - Service outside Police Force
Railways and Transport Safety Bill
4:00 pm
Mrs Anne McIntosh (Vale of York, Conservative)
I will be frank with the Minister because, in his inimitable way, he has been frank with us. I am trying to understand the purpose of clause 46. Does the clause envisage a situation in which a
constable could serve with a different police force? Will the Minister explain how the clause differs from what the hon. Member for Bath envisages? Reverting to the provision in clause 43 about ''facilitating inter-force co-operation'' perhaps the Minister will tell us that clause 46 is part of enabling that provision.
Will there be scope for a member of the British Transport police to be seconded to another police force? Equally, could a member of another police force be seconded to the British Transport police? Assuming that they are employed under similar conditions, there would be merit in having inter- changeability of personnel, as long as it did not happen all at once. That would be welcome.
What is the
''structure and circumstance of the Police Force''
to which subsection (2) refers? Does it merely recognise that the British Transport police are, in some respects, organised differently from other police forces, which might pose a problem? I truly want to understand the clause because the question asked by the hon. Member for Bath was a good one. I thought at one stage that there was a degree of clarity, but at this point I am not sure that the position is as clear as I first thought. Are the Government actively pressing the possibility of secondment between the forces? That is regarded as potentially a good idea and we need a pause in the pace of change because of it.