§ 23. Mr. Fisherasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will state the number of resignations from the police force to the nearest convenient date in the year 1965–66 compared with 1964–65.
§ Mr. Roy JenkinsFrom 1st October, 1964, to 30th September, 1965, 2,083 policemen, including probationers, resigned from forces in England and Wales. For the comparative period in 1965–66, the figure was 2,869. Recruitment went up from 7,251 in the first period to 8,477 in the second.
§ Mr. FisherNevertheless, does not the right hon. Gentleman honestly think that the rise in resignations indicates a general sense of frustration in the police force of which he has had recent and tangible personal experience? What is he doing to allay it? How many British policemen replied to the recent Toronto advertisement?
§ Mr. JenkinsI could not answer the last point without notice. Certainly the wastage in mid-career is serious and I do not discount its seriousness, but it must be seen in relation to the recruitment efforts, which are very good.