Tax cuts for good citizens
COUNCIL tax rebates for members of the public who become special constables is among a raft of incentives being considered by ministers preparing the biggest shake-up of policing for decades.
Volunteers could see their council tax bills halved as a reward for helping police patrol the streets.
The move looks likely to mean the end for Police Community Service Officers, who are facing the axe after enduring heavy criticism. The much-maligned “plastic policemen” or “Blunkett’s bobbies”, named after former Home Secretary David Blunkett who introduced them in 2002, are set to be an early casualty of next month’s Government spending review in which police forces are facing cuts in their budgets of up to 25 per cent.
EXPRESS OFFER: CLAIM £15 IN FREE BETS HERE!
The number of specials peaked at more than 67,000 in the Fifties but has since fallen to about 15,000.
The Government is keen to increase the number but it knows that persuading a sceptical public to become directly involved in policing their communities will be a difficult task and so is considering a series of rewards.
As well as a reduction in council tax, other incentives include a loyalty card scheme and the award of civic medals.
The proposals are contained in a series of submissions from senior police officers to the Government’s “Policing in the 21st century” consultation paper. The submission from the Association of Chief Police Officers highlights a scheme in Hull whereby special constables who worked in the city received up to a 50 per cent discount on their council tax.
The Superintendents’ Association’s submission said Norfolk Constabulary was considering a loyalty card scheme where officers get points for specific duties.
Unlike PCSOs, special constables are not paid but do have the power of arrest and many believe they are a more effective back-up force to full-time officers. Phasing out PCSOs and bringing in more specials to replace them is understood to be a favoured option.
Home Secretary Theresa May has pledged to remove red tape and return more officers to the streets as part of her back-to-basics reform of the police.
Involving public-spirited citizens would also fit in with David Cameron’s ideas of the Big Society.
Sir Denis O’Connor, Inspector of Constabulary, last week issued a damning report on the police’s record in dealing with antisocial behaviour.
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson admitted police had broken a “psychological contract” with the public over street yobbery.
One source said: “The prevailing wisdom seems to favour a return of traditional values and common sense. I don’t see how PCSOs will fit into that way of thinking, especially as budgets are likely to be cut quite drastically.”
The Tories have considered axing PCSOs for some time. Last year the then shadow Home Secretary Chris Grayling revealed he was contemplating wielding the axe. The Police Federation, which represents rank and file officers, also warned that public safety was being put at risk by the huge rise in the number of civilian police staff.
Chairman Paul McKeever said: “PCSOs were brought in for the best of reasons to deal with low-level disorder and antisocial behaviour. It is a deeply flawed experiment, however, and one that has not convinced us or many other people that it is a better alternative to employing fully warranted constables.”
Insiders say that police mistrust of PCSOs has been increasing, with many blaming the lower level of vetting required to recruit them.
