§ Mr. PaiceTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the number of police officers who will be removed from normal duties to escort Green Goddesses during the duration of the firefighters' strike; and what estimate he has made of the cost to police authorities of this additional responsibility in terms of overtime, cancelled rest days and non-availability for routine activity. [81666]
§ Mr. Denham[holding answer 19 November 2002]: I understand from the Association of Chief Police Officers that between 5,000–6,000 police officers, mostly working rest days, were used per day to escort Green Goddesses and staff control rooms during the firefighters dispute.
I have been advised by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) that it is very difficult to predict exactly what the final cost to police authorities of supporting emergency fire cover will be, as this will depend on the nature of the strike activity.