§ Mr. Kaufmanasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of current expenditure on the police in England and Wales is represented by wages and salaries of (a) police officers and (b) civilians.
§ Mr. Giles ShawThe provisional figures for current expenditure on the police in England and Wales in the financial year 1986–87 forecast 71 per cent. on police officers' pay and allowances, and 11 per cent. on civilians' pay.
§ Mr. Kaufmanasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has any proposals to transfer duties now performed by police officers to civilians.
§ Mr. Giles ShawThis is primarily a matter for chief officers of police and their police authorities, in the light of Home Office circular No. 114/1983 on manpower, effectiveness and efficiency in the police service, a copy of which was placed in the Library. We continue to encourage chief officers of police to release police officers, wherever possible, from duties which can be more properly and economically carried out by civilians. My right hon. Friend shall shortly be issuing guidance about coroners' officer posts.
§ Mr. Kaufmanasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what indicators are used by his Department to assess value for money or productivity in the police forces of England and Wales; and if he will arrange for the regular publication of information relating to such indicators.
§ Mr. Giles ShawWe look to Her Majesty's inspectors of constabulary for a professional judgment of a force's overall effectiveness. Home Office circular 114/1983, a copy of which is in the Library, sets out the broad criteria they will apply in considering whether a force is effectively and efficiently managed. I would also refer the right hon. Member to "Measures of Police Effectiveness" (Home Office Research and Planning Unit Paper 25), a copy of which is also in the Library. This has been drawn to the attention of chief officers of police and police authorities. We have asked HM inspectors to pay particular attention to the ways in which performance is assessed in forces, in order that good practices may be identified and more widely encouraged.
§ Mr. Kaufmanasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what is the anticipated total expenditure on wages and salaries of (a) police officers and (b) civilians in the police forces of England and Wales in 1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88 and 1988–89; and what are the manpower assumptions on which the projections are based;
(2) what is the anticipated manpower of the police forces of England and Wales for the years 1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88 and 1988–89, distinguishing between police officers and civilians;
(3) what is the anticipated total expenditure on the police in England and Wales in 1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88 and 1988–89.
§ Mr. Giles ShawThe information requested, which is available, in respect of the financial years 1985–86 and 1986–87 is as follows. Details for the further two years16W 1987–88 and 1988–89 cannot be given in advance of the forthcoming White Paper on the Government's Expenditure Plans 1986–87 to 1988–89.
Financial Year 1985–86 1986–87 £ £ Total Expenditure on the Police 2,935.3 million 3,024.8 million Pay and Allowances Police Officers' Pay and Allowances * 2,016.7 million Civilians' Pay * 315.1 million Manpower Assumptions Police Officers 120,888 121,661 Civilians† 39,111 39,882 Total Manpower Assumptions 159,999 161,543 Notes
* The total expenditure figure for 1985–86 includes the sum of current expenditure in local authority budgets, from which the pay and allowances element is not separately identifiable.
† The civilian figure includes part-time staff on a 2 for 1 basis and excludes traffic wardens and cadets.