THIN BLUE LINE READY TO BREAK
SAVAGE cuts by the Tories have left our police forces on the verge of a mental health crisis, a leader warns.
The number of officers taking time off sick due to the trauma of dealing with “horrific cases” has more than doubled in a decade.
And it comes as dwindling resources and ever smaller staff numbers cause officers’ workloads to spiral.
Steve Hartshorn, head of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said: “Police officers want to do their best while facing horrific cases.
Trauma
“The increase in workloads is significant – that’s down to austerity and budget cuts.
“They’re dealing with more trauma and violent scenes without any break. There’s a lack of support.”
Cops in England took more than 730,000 mental health sick days last year – up from 320,000 in 2012/13.
That equates to more than 2,000 officers absent each day last year
compared with 877 in 2012/13. London’s Metropolitan Police – Britain’s largest force – was the worst-hit with an estimated 292 officers absent each day due to mental health issues.
Police forces also suffered a 30% cut in numbers from
2010 to 2022, according to
Home Office figures.
There were 6,252 fewer frontline officers last year
ANGRY: Labour’s Rosena
compared with 2010, Labour said. And the party says a failure to invest in policing means officers are more likely to face mental health issues
that make them miss work.
Security
Dr Rosena Allin-khan, Shadow Cabinet Minister for Mental Health, said: “This Tory Government has run down public services – so many of our frontline workers are off sick citing mental health. I am tired of seeing people unable to get the help they need – all because of this Government’s disregard for the safety and security of the British people.
“The next Labour government will rebuild neighbourhood policing, delivering 13,000 extra neighbourhood officers and PCSOS, putting police back on the beat.”