2 Governance and accountability
British Transport Police
3. Specialist railway police—the BTP—patrol
Britain's railways and light rail systems.[1]
That responsibility includes Network Rail infrastructure and stations,
the London Underground, Docklands Light Railway, High Speed 1,
the Sunderland line of the Tyne and Wear Metro, Midland Metro,
Croydon Tramlink, Glasgow Subway, Emirates AirLine and Eurostar.[2]
In total, the BTP polices some 10,000 miles of railway track and
more than 3,000 railway stations and depots.[3]
It is not responsible for policing the majority of the Tyne and
Wear Metro, Manchester Metrolink or any other railway with which
it does not have a service agreement.
4. The BTP currently deploys some 2,900 police officers
and 350 police community support officers. Those officers are
supported by special constables and BTP-accredited security personnel,
who are employed by the railway companies.[4]
The BTP has an annual budget of around £280 million. That
sum is provided by train operating companies, Network Rail, Transport
for London and other companies which use the BTP's services.[5]
Each of those transport providers "makes a contribution commensurate
with the services provided to it."[6]
Transport providers pay for
specialist railway policing. That is a cost-effective arrangement
for taxpayers, if the BTP meets the needs of both the railway
industry and the travelling public. That requires effective governance
and accountability.
British Transport Police Authority
5. The BTPA is an independent body which holds the
BTP to account for its performance. It sets the BTP's targets,
monitors the BTP's operations and agrees the BTP's budget. The
BTPA's duties are similar to those of the Scottish Police Authority
or of a Police and Crime Commissioner in England and Wales. The
DfT told us:
The BTPA sets objectives for the policing of
the railway before the beginning of each financial year and publishes
a plan setting out the arrangements proposed for policing during
the year. In addition, it publishes a plan every three years setting
out medium-term and long-term strategies for railway policing;
and publishes an annual report on policing of the railways.[7]
6. The members of the BTPA were appointed by the
Secretary of State for Transport.[8]
Those appointments by the Secretary of State contrast with the
governance of local police forces, where there are elected Police
and Crime Commissioners. We examined the BTP's accountability
to the public partly because the BTP is funded by the rail industry,
but also because the members of the BTPA are appointed by the
Secretary of State. We specifically raised the question whether
passengers were adequately represented on the BTPA.
7. The DfT was confident that the structure of the
BTPA guaranteed that both the rail industry and passengers would
be adequately represented:
The British Transport Police Authority itself
is very prescribed in the sense of the membership of that authority
needing to include people who have experience and expertise in
the particular areas the police will be interested in. You have
English, Welsh and Scottish interests covered. You have police
staff and passenger interests covered. You also have the industry
with full representation.[9]
However, the BTPA told us that it did not "have
reserved places for anybody as such."[10]
The BTPA's duties are set out in the Railways and Transport Safety
Act 2003, which stated that the BTPA must include "at least
four persons who have knowledge of and experience in relation
to the interests of persons travelling by railway."[11]
The 2003 Act also stipulated that "the Secretary of State
shall ensure that the number of members is an odd number neither
lower than 11 nor higher than 17."[12]
The BTPA currently has 12 members.[13]
8. Passenger Focus is the statutory, independent
consumer watchdog representing the interests of rail users throughout
Britain.[14] The BTPA
stated:
Currently I do not have anybody from Passenger Focus
on the authority. We used to, but they retired, and we do not
have anybody at the moment. We have some vacancies.[15]
The Secretary of State for Transport
must appoint at least one new member of the BTPA in order to comply
with the Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003. In addressing
that point, the Secretary of State should appoint a member from
Passenger Focus, which is the statutory body representing the
interests of rail users and is therefore best placed to advance
the interests of passengers.
9. We observed that the BTP and the BTPA have a close
relationship. For example, they collaborated to provide our inquiry
with a joint written submission.[16]
That submission explained that "the Authority together with
BTP" set targets on policing the railway.[17]
It also stated that the "BTPA and BTP exercised professional
judgment" in determining the BTP's strategic objectives.[18]
However, the Minister told us that it is the BTPA's responsibility
to set strategic targets for the BTP.[19]
It is important
that the BTP and the BTPA work together effectively, but the BTPA
must be mindful of its obligations to oversee the work of the
BTP and to drive performance by setting realistic but challenging
targets on crime reduction and crime prevention. The BTPA must
avoid any perception that it is too close to the people whom it
should be holding to account.
Department for Transport
10. The BTPA and the BTP are accountable to the DfT.
The Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003 provided the Secretary
of State with the power to direct the BTPA and the BTP in relation
to strategic priorities, targets and performance indicators. The
Secretary of State can also require the Chief Constable to submit
reports and to supply specific information. The Minister stated:
To this point in time the powers have not been
used in any extensive way because the current system is working
effectively and well. There is always the potential to use the
powers to intervene … around strategic priorities, targets
and performance indicators, but there really has not been a need
to use them.[20]
11. The BTP's is an unusual British police force,
because, unlike most other British police forces, it is not overseen
by the Home Office. We explored whether that arrangement might
disadvantage the BTP. In particular, we were concerned that the
needs of the BTP might not be addressed in Home Office legislation.
The BTP referred to
the complexity of dealing with two Departments,
one of which is particularly focused on policing and one on transport.
Sometimes we need to make sure that we are speaking to both teams
to ensure that that ties in. There are one or two issues where
there have been some legislative anomalies. They arise primarily
because, when legislators in the Home Office are looking at new
Acts of Parliament, they may not necessarily directly link up
how that applies to us.[21]
12. The Minister acknowledged the importance of clear
channels of communication between the DfT and the Home Office.[22]
She adduced a specific example of liaison between the two Departments
to address the BTP's legislative requirements:
There was extensive contact between both Departments
about a clause in the Home Office's Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime
and Policing Bill … to put BTP officers on the same footing
as officers from other police forces in relation to the possession
of firearms.[23]
13. On the question whether the BTP should be overseen
by the DfT or by the Home Office, the BTP concluded:
Broadly I think the system works. We have very
close links with the Home Office and the Department for Transport,
and are able to bridge those gaps quite effectively.[24]
We are satisfied
that the BTP should be a DfT responsibility.
The DfT must maintain and develop its liaison links with the
Home Office to ensure that the specific operational requirements
of the BTP are addressed in future Home Office legislation.
1 The BTP has no jurisdiction in Northern Ireland. Back
2
DfT (SOR 002) para 2; Emirates AirLine is a cross-Thames cable
car in East London. BTP polices Eurostar services in conjunction
with French National Police. Back
3
BTP, About BTP Back
4
Q164 Back
5
DfT (SOR 002) para 4 Back
6
DfT (SOR 002) para 7 Back
7
DfT (SOR 002) paras 8 to 10 Back
8
Q171 Back
9
Q88 Back
10
Q167 Back
11
Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003, schedule 4(2) Back
12
Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003, schedule 4(1) Back
13
Q171 Back
14
Passenger Focus (SOR 007) para 1.1 Back
15
Q165 Back
16
BTP (SOR 010) Back
17
BTP (SOR 010) para 4.4 Back
18
BTP (SOR 010) para 4.7 Back
19
Q91 Back
20
Q91 Back
21
Q127 Back
22
Q81 Back
23
Q81 Back
24
Q127 Back
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