§ 31. Mr. AmessTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he is taking to improve police morale. [645]
§ Mr. DenhamThere is no established direct method of measuring the level of morale in the police service.
As part of the process of police reform the Government are determined to tackle those elements of police officers' working lives that can create frustration and detract from their ability to do their jobs in the way that they would wish.
We are determined to reduce the burden of unnecessary bureaucracy.
We are investing in technological support to help increase the effectiveness of the police in fighting crime and to ensure that officers are able to spend as much of their time as possible on the front line.
An ambitious programme of work in police training has begun to raise professional standards for officers and support staff, and to achieve greater consistency nationally.
We have turned a round the decline in police numbers that started under the last Government. Substantial Government investment in the police service is now delivering the positive results that we promised when the Crime Fighting Fund was launched in September 1999 and commenced in April 2000.
Police numbers rose in the 12 months to March 2001 by 1,349 officers to 125,519—an increase of 1.1 per cent. This is the largest single annual increase in police numbers since 1988–89.
We expect that within the lifetime of this Parliament police strength will reach 130,000 officers.
§ Mr. HealdTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement about the level of police morale in England and Wales. [152]
§ Mr. Denham[holding answer 25 June 2001]: There is no established direct method of measuring the level of morale in the police service.
As part of the process of police reform the Government are determined to tackle those elements of police officers' working lives that can create frustration and detract from their ability to do their jobs in the way that they would wish.
57WWe are determined to reduce the burden of unnecessary bureaucracy.
We are investing in technological support to help increase the effectiveness of the police in fighting crime and to ensure that officers are able to spend as much of their time as possible on the front line.
An ambitious programme of work in police training has begun to raise professional standards for officers and support staff, and to achieve greater consistency nationally.
We have turned around the decline in police numbers that started under the last Government. Substantial Government investment in the police service is now delivering the positive results that we promised when the Crime Fighting Fund was launched in September 1999 and commenced in April 2000.
Police numbers rose in the 12 months to March 2001 by 1,349 officers to 125,519—an increase of 1.1 per cent. This is the largest single annual increase in police numbers since 1988–89.
We intend that police numbers overall should continue to rise. We expect that within the lifetime of this Parliament police strength will reach 130,000 officers.