§ Mrs. RocheTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many beat officers in each police authority have been replaced with special constables in each of the last three years. [18708]
§ Mr. MacleanThe deployment of all police officers, whether regulars or specials, is a matter for chief officers. But, according to the information we have available centrally, no chief officer has cut the number of regular beat officers in order to replace them with special constables. Specials are volunteers who work part-time to supplement, rather than to replace, the efforts of the regular police.