§ Mr. Cordleasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the numbers of policemen and policewomen who would need to be recruited to bring the force up to strength this year in England and Wales; and how this compares with his estimate for each of the last five years.
§ Mr. Elystan MorganTo bring the police forces of England and Wales up to full establishment by the end of the 1969–70 financial year would require the recruitment of some 24,300 men and women—on the assumption that the number leaving during that year is the average of the past five years. Since recruitment on this scale is not realistic, it serves no useful purpose to make a similar calculation, retrospectively, in respect of the previous five years. On the same assumption about the number leaving, 7,865 will need to be recruited in 1969–70 in order to achieve a net increase of 2,000. I consider this to be a realistic figure and have asked Police Authorities to work to it.