Asked by: Baroness Harris of Richmond (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of police suicides between 2011 and 2019, published by the Office for National Statistics on 30 October 2019.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)
The death of any police officer is a tragedy. The Government and police leaders take this matter seriously and are working to support the mental and physical wellbeing of all police officers and staff.
We have invested in programmes which offer help directly to officers and staff. This includes £7.5 million to fund the development of the National Police Wellbeing Service, which was launched in 2019. The Service is helping forces to identify where there is most risk of impacts on mental health, and developing work around building resilience, as well as putting in place support for those who need it in response to traumatic events.
The Government has also accelerated work to introduce a Police Covenant, which will ensure our police get the support and protection they need. The Covenant will be enshrined in law, with provisions being brought forward later this session, and the Home Secretary will have a duty to report annually on progress.
Our focus will be on health and wellbeing, physical protection and support for families. We are in no doubt that an area we must focus on is mental health support. We will continue to work closely with policing partners to ensure the Covenant has a lasting impact on our police.
Asked by: Baroness Harris of Richmond (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made in their campaign to recruit 20,000 new police officers.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)
As at 30 June 2020, 4,336 additional officers have been recruited towards the target of 20,000 and will be trained to rise to the policing challenges of the future.
All forces have prioritised recruitment. I am extremely grateful to those brave men and women who have signed up to join the police and keep our communities safe.
The next official data will be published on 29 October.
Asked by: Baroness Harris of Richmond (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the age profile of those recruited through their campaign to recruit 20,000 new police officers.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)
The Government is delivering on the people’s priorities by recruiting an additional 20,000 police officers over the next three years.
The 20,000 officer uplift is a once in a generation opportunity to enable all forces become more representative of the communities they serve. We are already seeing applications from a wide range of candidates with diverse backgrounds and from a range of ages who are bringing particular skills and experience to the police service.
Amendments to Police Regulations made this year mean that individuals can apply to join the police at 17 years of age for appointment on reaching 18 years, opening the way for more candidates wishing to apply to join the police.
Asked by: Baroness Harris of Richmond (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the need to ensure that workforce representation in policing reflects the communities in which officers will serve.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)
The police officer workforce is more diverse than ever before. The most recently published Police Officer Uplift data show that as at 30 June 2020 Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic officers represented 7.4% of all police officers.
The Government has been clear that forces must do more to become representative of the communities they serve. Attracting a broad range of talent, cultures and backgrounds to a career in policing is a core ambition in our drive to recruit 20,000 extra police officers.
We are supporting forces with a variety of attraction and recruitment strategies, whilst delivering a campaign that’s been designed to reach the widest and most diverse audience possible including those who have never considered a policing career.
Innovative schemes such as Police Now are making the police workforce more diverse than ever before; showing that we can attract the brightest and best into policing, whilst introducing new perspectives into policing some of the country’s most challenging neighbourhoods.
Retention and progression also play a crucial role, particularly in enabling officers and staff to move into more senior and more specialised ranks and roles.
Asked by: Baroness Harris of Richmond (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to make the possession of nitrous oxide for personal recreational purposes an offence.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)
There are no plans to change the law to make the possession of Nitrous Oxide for personal use an offence. Possession with intent to supply is already unlawful and we have no plans to change that. Nitrous Oxide is a psychoactive substance and subject to the provisions in the Psychoactive Substances Act 2016 (the 2016 Act). It is an offence under the 2016 Act to produce, supply, offer to supply, possess with intent to supply, import and export a psychoactive substance, subject to certain exemptions. It is also an offence to possess a psychoactive substance in a custodial institution, subject to certain exemptions.
Asked by: Baroness Harris of Richmond (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will nominate representatives of the Police Superintendents' Association to the Police Advisory Board of England and Wales; and if not, why not.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)
The Police Advisory Board for England and Wales (PABEW) was established as a non-departmental public body under section 46 of the Police Act 1964.
Its remit is to consider draft regulations under the Police Act 1996, with respect to matters such as recruitment, diversity, and police workforce reform.
The Board is chaired by Elizabeth France and includes representatives of interested organisations, including the Police Superintendents’ Association. A full list of the Board’s membership is available at gov.uk/government/organisations/police-advisory-board-for-england-and-wales/about/membership