§ Mr. DrewTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the total cost was of early retirement and retirement on the ground of ill health to police authorities in(a) 1980, (b) 1990 and (c) the latest 12 months for which statistics are available; and for each of these years, what percentage of the final budget this cost accounted for. [143881]
§ Mr. Charles ClarkeThere is no provision within the police pension scheme for officers to retire early with an actuarially reduced pension. Maximum pension benefits are payable on completion of 30 years' service and most officers retire having completed at least 30 years' service.
Officers may also retire with an immediate pension before completion of 30 years—or reaching compulsory retirement age—on the ground of ill-health. A police authority may retire an officer on that ground if he or she becomes permanently disabled from performing the ordinary duties of a police officer. The total cost of retirement on ill health ground to police authorities is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.