HC Deb 14 July 1977 vol 935 cc762-4
8. Mr. John Hunt

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what specific action he is proposing to take in the light of the report of the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis for 1976.

Mr. Merlyn Rees

I have given, and will continue to give, the fullest consideration to the many different aspects of the report in so far as they touch on my responsibilities.

Mr. Hunt

What is the right hon. Gentleman's reaction to the comments of the former Commissioner on bail abuse? Does he accept Sir Robert Mark's rather alarming estimate that 3,000 crimes a year are being committed in London by people on bail? If that is so, does it not represent a real danger and a matter of great concern to the people of Greater London, and does it not undermine the excellent detection work being done by the Metropolitan Police?

Mr. Rees

I have noted with interest what the former Commissioner has said. When these figures are set against the total number of people released on bail, one sees that they are not inconsistent with those revealed by earlier research in London and Scotland indicating that about 5 per cent. of people released on bail abscond and about 3 per cent. are known to have committed offences while on bail.

Mr. Christopher Price

Is my right hon. Friend aware that some of us who have criticised the police from time to time are glad on occasions such as this to pay tribute to the vast majority of the Metropolitan Police who do a very difficult job? Can he say something about what is happening concerning overtime payments in the Metropolitan Police? It seems that the sudden cutting of overtime payments which has been proposed by the new Commissioner will cause hardship to individual officers. Will my right hon. Friend discuss this matter with the Commissioner?

Mr. Rees

I should have to be very careful in doing that. I have not issued any directive on the matter. The Commissioner recently decided, as a matter of good management, to introduce a new and more effective system for the control of overtime in the force. This year the financial provision for overtime in the force as a whole is the same as that made last year. There is certainly no intention that the new controls should interfere with the operational needs of the force. But this is a matter for the Commissioner. I am not in business to do the Commissioner's job of controlling the way in which he uses his men.

Mr. Townsend

In many parts of London the Metropolitan Police are seriously undermanned. On such occasions as Monday, when one-sixth of the police force was deployed at Grunwick, coverage on the ground in outer London was very thin and a se ions situation could easily have arisen, particularly in my borough.

Mr. Rees

There are about 1,300 extra Metropolitan Police men compared with three years ago. Certainly that is not enough. Undoubtedly, when there is a special occasion—be it Grunwick or other occasions of a quite different nature—men are drawn in from other areas. It is Important that the number of men we recruit for the police should increase. Until Christmas, the recruitment rate was rising all over the country. It is curious that it has dropped this year, but I must take it into account.

Mr. Arthur Lewis

Leaving aside special occasions, my right hon. Friend will be aware that there are stress areas in which there are certain peculiar problems calling for special police activity. I notice that my right hon. Friend is pulling a face. In some areas there is quite a lot of mugging and vandalism and people cannot walk on the streets in safety. Can my right hon. Friend do something to help the police, who are already undermanned, to ensure that they can get on with the job they want to do in areas such as mine and, I think, even his?

Mr. Rees

There are parts of the country and parts of the metropolis where there are special problems, and my hon. Friend knows what they are. If there were more policemen, we could improve on the situation. The Commissioner is well aware of this and deploys his men accordingly.

Mr. Alison

Following the matter raised by the hon. Member for Lewisham, West (Mr. Price), can the right hon. Gentleman, as the police authority for the Metropolitan Police, say categorically whether the Metropolitan Police force or any officers in it are engaged in any industrial action, working to rule or threatening so to do?

Mr. Rees

The advice which I am given is that there is no working to rule. That is what I am told.