MPS urged to boost trainee officers’ pay to aid recruitment

STARTING salaries for trainee police constables need to increase in order to recruit enough officers to tackle rising crime and restore public faith, it has been claimed.

Currently, the lowest paid recruits receive a salary of £18,450 but the Police Federation wants the figure to rise to at least £24,177 across the 43 forces in England and Wales.

The Government has vowed to recruit 20,000 new officers but the Police Federation has warned that, without an increase in pay, not enough people will want to join the service.

In its submission to the Police Remuneration Review Body the federation said: “The starting salary, and early progression pay, are key.

“Without addressing these we believe there is no hope that the recruitment targets will be achieved.”

The recommendation comes after a police watchdog said the public had largely given up on officers solving crimes such as assault and burglary.

A report from Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services revealed that a suspect was charged in just 7.8 per cent of crimes recorded in the year to March 2019 – down from 9.1 per cent the previous year.

John Apter, chairman of the Police Federation, said officers found it “soul destroying” when they were unable to respond promptly but at the same time the public would be “horrified” by how few officers there were available.

He added: “In order to attract and retain the numbers and calibre of police officers needed, salary will be a key factor. While we are starting to see some positive moves from the Government, they need to show they are serious about their commitment to policing, by paying police officers fairly for the uniquely challenging and often dangerous job they do.

“Politicians must now put their money where their mouths are and pay police officers fairly.”