Police pay remains 'woeful' despite pay increase announcement, senior officer says

Rich Cooke, chairman of the region's police federation, said the £1,900 boost – roughly an extra £36 per week – from September 1 was "better" than he expected.

But he said it was still an "effective" pay cut for officers, with criticism being levelled at the Home Office nationally that the increase is still below inflation.

The rise comes amid other pay rises for teachers, NHS staff, teachers, the armed forces and prison staff amidst a backdrop of inflation soaring to 9.1 per cent.

Federation chiefs said the rise would be positive news for those who've recently joined the force, and new joiners, but was disappointing for those longer in service and in supervisory ranks who are also struggling financially.

Mr Cooke said: "This award is stacked more in favour of them, rightly so, but this is an effective pay cut across all ranks and spinal points. We are losing experienced and skilled officers hand over fist due to the vast loss in the value of our pay, as well as the slashing of our pensions – which is part of our overall package.

"In the medium and longer term, we need to see successive real-term increases in police pay as well as fair pension scheme amendments this year.

"This is better than I expected but, in the context of everything we have seen over the last decade or more, the situation remains woeful. It’s difficult to be positive when my members continue to experience remuneration levels well below what they deserve."

National chair Steve Hartshorn said the Government’s pay award was a "small first step" in repairing relationships between ministers and hard-working police officers. The pay increase, he said, would help in bridging the gap between household incomes and the current cost of living.

He said: "Officers have already faced two years of a blanket pay freeze, a 20 per cent real term pay cut since 2010, and now huge additional cost of living pressures.

"The average five per cent settlement announced today is still below inflation, and PFEW (Police Federation of England and Wales) believes the Government 'still has a long way to go' to demonstrate it is treating officers with the dignity and respect they deserve. This is only a small first step forward in regaining their trust.

"It is disappointing that the pay increase is not good news for all officers, negatively affecting those in higher ranks. It’s in the Government’s direct interest to ensure that all police officers are paid properly and can pay their bills. If they don’t, retaining the high-quality officers our country needs – and this Government promised – will be doomed to fail.

"PFEW has worked, and will continue to work, for better work conditions for all our members."

The Home Office said it accepted recommendations from the independent police pay review body in full, adding that the money is "targeted at those on the lowest pay points to provide them with an uplift of up to 8.8 per cent, and between 0.6 per cent and 1.8 per cent for those on the highest pay points."

Home Secretary Priti Patel said: “It is right that we recognise the extraordinary work of our officers who day in, day out, work tirelessly to keep our streets, communities and country safe."