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12 Jan 2009 : Column 302W—continued
| Table 3: Provisional numbers of Essex police force officers by age band (headcount)( 1) as at 31 March( 2) | ||||
| As at 31 March each year | 25 and under | 26 to 40 | 41 to 55 | Over 55 |
| (1) Provisional data that have not been validated by force. Totals may not match those published elsewhere. (2) Data available from 2003 onwards. | ||||
| T able 4: Provisional numbers of Essex police force staff by age band (headcount)( 1) as at 31 March( 2) | ||||
| As at 31 March each year | 25 and under | 26 to 40 | 41 to 55 | Over 55 |
| (1) Provisional data that have not been validated by force. Totals may not match those published elsewhere. (2) Data available from 2003 onwards. | ||||
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers of each rank have voluntarily ceased employment, other than through redundancy, in Essex Police since June 2007. [244875]
Mr. Coaker: The available data are the number of full-time equivalent police officer voluntary resignations from Essex police force during 2007-08 (1 April 2007 to 31 March 2008). The data given have been rounded to the nearest whole number.
During this time no officers in any of the chief officer, chief superintendent, superintendent or chief inspector ranks resigned.
Two inspectors, 10 sergeants, and 61 constables resigned during this time.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what the average annual rate of sickness absence was in (a) Southend police and (b) Essex Police in each year since 2001; [244946]
(2) how many and what proportion of working days were lost due to (a) sickness and (b) stress, anxiety or depression in (i) Southend police and (ii) Essex police in each year since 2001. [244947]
Mr. Coaker: The available data relating to police sickness absence are for the amount of police officer and police staff working time lost to sickness, and have been centrally collected from 2002-03 onwards only. The data are published annually on the Home Office website, located at:
For 2002-03 and 2003-04, the data are given in the 2003-04 Police Performance Monitoring report, in the form of police officer days lost per person (headcount) per year. For 2004-05 onwards, the data are given in the annual Police Performance Assessment reports, in the form of average number of police officer hours lost per person (headcount) per year. For 2006-07 onwards, this headcount measure was changed to a full-time equivalent measure.
Links are provided for the following years, relating to Essex police. The required data can be found under the headings “resource use” or “resources and efficiency”:
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many police officers in Essex Police of each sex took early retirement in each year since 2001; [244948]
(2) how many police officers who were facing disciplinary charges in Essex Police retired on grounds of ill health (a) before and (b) after disciplinary hearings were completed in each of the last five years. [244949]
Mr. Coaker: Under the Police Pensions Regulations 1987 police officers can retire with an ordinary pension if they have at least 25 years’ service. The regulations do not provide for early retirement as such, except ill-health retirement on the ground of permanent disablement for the performance of the ordinary duties of a member of the force. The number of ill-health retirements from Essex police between 2000-01 and 2004-05 is given in the following table. HM Inspectorate of Constabulary no longer publish or collect data on numbers of ill-health retirements and figures after 2004-05 are not available.
Data on numbers of officers retiring on ill-health or other grounds in the period between having been informed that they are to appear before a disciplinary hearing and the completion of those proceedings are not held centrally.
| Ill-health retirements, Essex police | |
| Number | |
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average response time to calls made to the police in (a) Essex and (b) Southend was in each year since 1997; what guidance her Department has given on average response times; what steps her Department takes to monitor police force response times; and if she will make a statement. [244950]
Mr. Coaker: This information is not held centrally. This is a matter for the chief constable of Essex police.
Response times to calls, both emergency and non-emergency, is a fundamental part of the Policing Pledge introduced by the Home Secretary in the Policing Green Paper. By the end of the year all forces in England and Wales will aim to answer 999 calls within 10 seconds, deploying to emergencies immediately and giving an estimated time of arrival. All non-emergency calls should also be answered promptly and if attendance is needed an estimated time of arrival will be given.
The Policing Green Paper sets out the new relationship between the Government, police and public and the HMIC will validate the delivery of the Pledge, including response times, through their inspection process. Police authorities will also wish to be satisfied that the Pledge is being delivered for local people and the public can raise it locally with the police themselves or through their police authority if they feel that the standards within the Pledge are not being met.
Police: Finance
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate has been made of the total implementation cost of the measures in the Policing Green Paper, published on 17 July 2008. [241605]
Jacqui Smith: The estimated costs of implementing measures contained in the Policing Green Paper were set out in the nine impact assessments completed as part of the development process. Copies of the assessments are available on-line at:
Police: Firearms
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which police forces do not have dedicated armed response units. [246006]
Jacqui Smith: All 43 police forces in England and Wales have dedicated armed response units. Details of the number of authorised firearms officers in England and Wales are published on an annual basis and can be found on the Home Office website at:
Police: Medals
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reasons the Police Long Service Medal requires longer qualification service than other equivalent long service medals awarded to military or civilian personnel. [243934]
Mr. Coaker: The Police Long Service and Good Conduct Medal (PLS and GCM) was the first UK civilian emergency service long service medal introduced (Fire 1954, Ambulance 1996 and Prisons 2008) and therefore, when it was instituted, the qualification period was not at variance with any other existing civilian emergency service long service medal. It should be noted that the award criteria vary for all these medals, with some not including a good conduct element and others requiring that a considerable period of front-line duty is served, in order to qualify. Military long service medals relate to different service criteria and work patterns to civilian medals and therefore any comparisons to civilian equivalents would be inappropriate.
Police: Moldova
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if she will establish an exchange programme between the UK and Moldova police to improve co-operation to reduce serious organised crime; [243704]
(2) if she will make arrangements with her Moldovan counterpart for regular bilateral consultations to implement the provisions of the 2001 Memorandum of Understanding between the UK and Moldova. [243706]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 16 December 2008]: SOCA undertakes limited but productive bilateral co-operation with its counterparts in Moldova. This co-operation is underpinned by a Memorandum of Understanding on Co-operation in the fight against Serious Crime, Organised Crime, Illicit Drug Trafficking and In Like Matters of Mutual Interest, of 17 January 2001, signed by ACPO, HM Customs and Excise, Serious Fraud Office, the Crown Prosecution Service of England and Wales, the National Crime Squad and the National Criminal Intelligence Service. SOCA has assumed the interests and responsibilities of the last two agencies following its establishment in 2006.
SOCA welcomes any opportunity to improve its collaboration with overseas partners.
Police: Occupational Health
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what standards are in place for the provision of occupational health services for armed police officers; and what arrangements are made for the monitoring of the (a) physical and (b) mental health of such officers. [246005]
Jacqui Smith: The provision of occupational health services for police officers and police staff is the responsibility of the individual chief constable and police authority. All forces have a clearly defined duty of care to their personnel under health and safety legislation.
Police: Pay
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to the Policing Green Paper of July 2008, what mechanism is in place to assess chief constables' performance and performance-related pay. [243596]
Jacqui Smith: Chief constables' performance is assessed through performance and development reviews (PDRs) which include consideration of their objectives and development plans. The Green Paper explains that we will in future give police authorities the lead role in this process. Chief constables' performance pay is based on the PDR assessment and is determined by the Police Authority in consultation with HM Inspectorate of Constabulary.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what criteria are used to determine whether police constables in Essex Police receive a bonus; and if she will make a statement; [244866]
(2) how much each police officer in Essex Police has received in bonuses in each of the last three years; and what the rank of each such officer was; [244867]
(3) what the average salary of a serving police officer of each rank in Essex police force was in each year since 2001; [244868]
(4) how much each police officer in Essex Police has received in bonuses in each of the last three financial years; and what the rank of each was. [244876]
Mr. Coaker: The criteria for bonuses for constables are set out in police regulations and are that an officer may receive a payment of between £50 and £500 at the discretion of the chief officer for a piece of work that is outstandingly demanding, unpleasant or important. Information about amounts paid to individual officers and average salaries are not collected centrally.
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