Re-interview police for jobs every five years, says review

ALL police officers should be re-interviewed for their jobs every five years to weed out those who are unsuitable to serve, a report has recommended.

A two-year review of policing in England and Wales, carried out by the Police Foundation think tank, claims public trust has been so seriously corroded following scandals that only root and branch reform can repair the damage. The strategic review, chaired by Sir Michael Barber, warned that unless there was urgent cultural and structural change, the very principle of policing by consent was under threat.

Among more than 50 recommendations, aimed at restoring public confidence in policing, was the idea that a new licence to practise be introduced for all serving officers. Issued by the Home Office, the licences would need to be renewed every five years and would be subject to officers passing professional tests and an interview.

It is thought such a process would allow forces to spot officers not up to the job or weed out those who displayed attitudes not appropriate in the modern police. Any officer who did not pass the assessment could be offered support, but those who repeatedly failed to make the grade would have their licence revoked and could no longer serve.

The review also recommended that to improve public confidence every force should increase the number of visible bobbies on the beat.

The report’s authors also said there needed to be more effort made to improve ethnic diversity in the police, warning that at the current pace of change it would take another 58 years to achieve a police force that was representative of the population.

With detection rates having halved to just 9 per cent over the past seven years and public satisfaction with the police falling, the report recommended major investment in front-line policing, training and technology.

Sir Michael said: “There is a crisis of confidence in policing in this country which is corroding public trust. The reasons are deep rooted and complex – some cultural and others systemic.

“However, taken together, unless there is urgent change, they will end up destroying the principle of policing by consent that has been at the heart of British policing for decades. Policing in this country is at a crossroads and it cannot stand still whilst the world changes so quickly around it. The warning signs if we do nothing are flashing red and we ignore them at our peril.”