§ Lord Janner of Braunstoneasked Her Majesty's Government
What studies the Home Office is carrying out into patterns of retirement from police force to police force and as to the reasons why police officers are leaving (a) early or (b) after 30 years' service. [HL427]
§ The Minister of State, Home Office (Lord Rooker)A number of Home Office studies in the 1990s looked at the reasons why people leave the police service early other than on medical grounds. These studies identified particular difficulties in retaining officers who are female, graduates or from minority ethnic groups. The need for further research on all aspects of retention will be considered in the coming months.
The importance of ensuring that the medical retirement rates for all forces are more consistent has been recognised for some time and we are currently considering how best to tackle the divergence in performance between forces.
As most police officers are entitled to retire with an immediate—and maximum—pension after completion of 30 years' service it is to be expected that the majority of officers would choose to retire at this stage. We are, however, considering how suitable officers might be encouraged to delay their retirement as part of our plans to boost police numbers to record levels. This clearly requires an understanding of the motivations of officers who retire with 30 years' service.