§ Mr. McNamaraTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the membership is(a) in total and (b) broken down by rank of the Police Federation for Northern Ireland; what subscription is paid by members; and what other sources and amounts of income are available to the Federation, including commission and payments arising from services and facilities for members from commercial and other activities. [131399]
§ Mr. IngramThe Police Federation for Northern Ireland represents all police officers below the rank of Superintendent. At 31 March 2000, the total numbers in these ranks was 12,061 broken down as follows.
806W
Total numbers Chief Inspector 170 Inspector 498 Sergeant 1,390 Constable 6,163 Full-Time Reserve 2,688 Part-Time Reserve 1,152 The current voluntary subscription is £6.51 per month and 11,291 officers currently subscribe. Commercial companies pay no commission on the services they provide as this is used to lower costs for members. Advertising, for example in the Police Beat magazine, does not cover the production costs of the publication. There are no other sources of income.
§ Mr. McNamaraTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans he has to review the regulations and role of the Police Federation for Northern Ireland to require independently audited direct postal ballots for the election of the chairman and other officers of the Central Committee; and if he will require the Police Federation to circulate periodically its members with audited financial accounts and statements of its affairs. [131396]
§ Mr. IngramThere are no plans to carry out such a review. Officials of the Police Federation for Northern Ireland are elected in a similar manner to those of the Federations of England, Scotland and Wales. The elections are audited by the Chief Constable and the Federation plays no part in the election procedure.
The Police (Northern Ireland) Act 1998 sets out the financial constraints placed upon the Police Association and regulation 21 of the Police Association Regulations 1991 provides for the accounts to be properly audited and published in a suitable manner (at Conference) and forwarded to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. Full accounts are available for inspection by any member and are also forwarded to the Chief Constable and the Police Authority for Northern Ireland.
§ Mr. McNamaraTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when the next election of the Police Federation for Northern Ireland will be held; and what plans he has to reform its election procedure in line with existing statutory obligations for trade unions. [131397]
§ Mr. IngramMembership elections to the Police Federation for Northern Ireland Regional Boards are held triennially. The next scheduled elections are due in January 2001. The Federation is not a trade union and its activities are strictly controlled by regulation.
§ Mr. McNamaraTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the date of the last election for the Police Federation for Northern Ireland was; how many candidates there were broken down by(a) category and (b) area; how many were returned unopposed; how many contested elections have been held; and what was the (i) actual and (ii) percentage turnout in each case. [131398]
§ Mr. IngramThe last membership elections of the Police Federation for Northern Ireland Regional Boards were held on 27 and 28 January 1998. It is not possible to provide the remainder of the information requested as ballot papers are destroyed after a period of three months.