HC Deb 09 February 2000 vol 344 cc173-5W
Mr. Ivan Henderson

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the number of police officers in each police force area in England and Wales, and in total, for the latest available date; and, if he will list the total number of(a) police officers and (b) civilian support staff in England and Wales for each year from 1990. [109673]

Mr. Straw

The information is set out in the tables. At the end of September 1999, the total number of police officers in England and Wales was 125,464. The number of officers in the 43 forces (excluding officers seconded to the National Crime Squad, the National Criminal Intelligence Service and central service) was 123,050. At the end of September 1999 there were 53,254 civilian support staff in the police service.

I have also accepted the recommendations of a Working Group chaired by Her Majesty's Inspector of Constabulary and including representatives of the Association of Chief Police Officers and the Association of Police Authorities on the re-classification of police service personnel. The Working Group recommended that greater recognition should be given to the important contribution that civilian support staff make to operational policing. Civilian staff now account for 30 per cent. of total police service personnel.

From March 2000, police service staff will be categorised within three bands as (a) operational, (b) operational support, or (c) organisational support. The new information, to be collected annually by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary, will provide a more accurate reflection of the deployment of all police service personnel.

We shall continue to publish information on police officer numbers in the usual way.

Police numbers—change between March 1999 and September 1999
Force Strength as at 30 September 1999 Change since 31 March 1999
Avon and Somerset 2,988.7 -11
Bedfordshire 1,048.4 +7
Cambridgeshire 1,272.2 -2
Cheshire 2,043.6 -27
City of London 744.6 -33
Cleveland 1,372.6 -43
Cumbria 1,092.9 -33
Derbyshire 1,763.6 +5
Devon and Cornwall 2,861.1 -26
Dorset 1,276.1 -3
Durham 1,554.6 -13
Dyfed-Powys 1,048.6 +22
Essex 2,834.7 -56
Gloucestershire 1,098 -6
Greater Manchester 6,810.3 No change
Gwent 1,261.3 +14
Hampshire 3,410.8 -63
Hertfordshire 1,760 +36
Humberside 1,926.2 -48
Kent 3,256.7 +56
Lancashire 3,221.4 -23
Leicestershire 1,997.5 +4
Lincolnshire 1,110.8 -29
Merseyside 4,070.8 -140
Metropolitan police 25,884.5 -188
Norfolk 1,381.5 No change
Northamptonshire 1,130 -7
Northumbria 3,800.1 -40
North Wales 1,399 +8
North Yorkshire 1,293.7 -43
Nottinghamshire 2,227 +2
South Wales 2,983 +2
South Yorkshire 3,165 -3
Staffordshire 2,206 -32
Suffolk 1,160 -30
Surrey 1,721.1 +59
Sussex 2,909.3 +63
Thames Valley 3,749.5 +1
Warwickshire 915.7 +8
West Mercia 1,979.4 -45
West Midlands 7,296.4 -24
West Yorkshire 4,873 -109
Wiltshire 1,150.2 -1
Force total strength 123,050 -791
Seconded police officers 2,414 +159
Total police service strength 125,464 -632
1 Includes officers seconded to NCS, NCIS and central service such as National Police Training.
Total police service personnel—1990–99
Year Total police officers Total civilian support staff
31 March 1990 126,777 44,525
31 March 1991 127,495 46,373
31 March 1992 127,627 47,320
31 March 1993 128,290 49,503
31 March 1994 127,897 50,229
31 March 1995 127,222 51,096
31 March 1996 126,901 52,933
31 March 1997 127,158 53,011
31 March 1998 126,814 52,974
31 March 1999 126,096 53,031
30 September 1999 125,464 53,254