Mr. Michael FosterTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many(a) police officers and (b) operational police officers per head of population there are in each police authority in England. [15238]
§ Mr. DenhamThe information requested is set out in the table in the form of population per police officer. Operational officers are defined by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary as any member of staff, including covert staff, whose primary role (ie over 50 per cent. of their time) is directly to deliver the overarching aims of the police service. To 'directly deliver', the role must involve routine and immediate interface (either face to face or by telephone) with the public, including covert operations; staff in such roles can be considered as front line service providers.
478W
Police force Population per police officer1 Population per operational police officer1 Avon and Somerset 507 531 Bedfordshire 543 595 Cambridgeshire 559 643 Cheshire 491 555 Cleveland 395 433 Cumbria 469 496 Derbyshire 534 609 Devon and Cornwall 535 566 Dorset 511 540 Durham 380 423 Essex 560 583 Gloucestershire 479 542 Greater Manchester 373 403 Hampshire 518 547
Police force Population per police officer1 Population per operational police officer1 Hertfordshire 543 587 Humberside 460 498 Kent 478 544 Lancashire 438 476 Leicestershire 460 501 Lincolnshire 523 559 London2 285 325 Merseyside 344 380 Norfolk 561 626 Northamptonshire 537 576 Northumbria 368 404 North Yorkshire 573 605 Nottinghamshire 467 490 South Yorkshire 407 467 Staffordshire 498 581 Suffolk 595 618 Surrey 522 614 Sussex 531 613 Thames Valley 571 608 Warwickshire 548 627 West Mercia 585 684 West Midlands 354 403 West Yorkshire 439 461 Wiltshire 545 590 England 416 472 1 Full time equivalents 2 Figures for the City of London and Metropolitan police have been combined Notes:
1. Population figures are as at mid 1999 and are provided by the Office for National Statistics
2. Police numbers figures are as at 31 March 2001 (Home Office Statistical Bulletin—Police Service Strength)