West Midlands Police to sue Government over pension plans
Police chiefs are planning legal action against the Government unless it backs down on controversial plans to increase force pension contributions.
The decision was taken by the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC), which has sent a formal letter to the Treasury saying it will seek a judicial review of the Government’s proposals.
It comes after ministers unveiled the new pension plans, which the National Police Chiefs' Council says will cost forces in England and Wales £417 million by 2020/21, putting 10,000 jobs on the line.
West Midlands Police Chief Constable Dave Thompson has branded the proposals 'utterly extraordinary', and warned his cash-strapped force could lose £20m and 500 officers as a result.
And Staffordshire Police Chief Constable Gareth Morgan said the £6.6m cost to his force over two years would 'undoubtedly mean reducing our overall headcount'.
The NPCC represents police chiefs of the 43 local forces in England and Wales.
It has already hired a barrister to seek a judicial order forcing the Government to climb down over the issue, which comes at a time when forces have lost nearly a fifth of their funding since 2010.
An NPCC spokesman said: “We have raised concerns about proposed pension changes affecting police force contributions with the Treasury and informed them of our intention to legally challenge the proposal if it goes ahead.”
Mr Morgan described the move as 'both regrettable and totally avoidable', adding that it was 'not unreasonable to expect those charged with enforcing the law to expect law makers to uphold the law'.
Mr Thompson said the pensions decision could herald a fresh crisis in policing, adding: "We are struggling to deliver a service to the public. I think criminals are well aware now how stretched we are. These further cuts will leave us smaller than we have ever been."
Theresa May was pressed on the issue of police pensions during PMQs by shadow policing minister Louise Haigh.
The Prime Minister said: "We are committed to public service pensions that are fair to public service workers, but also fair to the taxpayer. It is important that the costs of those pensions are fully understood and fully recognised by government.
"The Budget has made clear that there is £4.5 billion available to support public services next year in managing increased pensions costs."
She added that Home Secretary Sajid Javid was 'working closely' with police, 'to understand the impact of pensions changes and ensure we make the right funding decisions to support frontline services'.
Mr Javid is due to address police chiefs at their annual conference this week.
