PCC accuses the Met of trying to poach Kent Police Officers

Matthew Scott signs a joint letter to London Mayor in protest. 

 

Kent’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Matthew Scott, has described a new recruitment campaign by the Metropolitan Police  as “selfish” and has urged them to withdraw a bonus payment, designed to lure officers from other forces. 

 

The Metropolitan Police is offering experienced officers a one-off bonus of £5000 if they transfer to the London force.  All police forces in England and Wales are recruiting, to meet the Government’s target of 20,000 additional police officers by March 2023.   

 

But the Kent PCC is calling on the Met and the Mayor of London to stop using bonus payments to try to recruit experienced officers from neighbouring forces. 

 

Matthew Scott along with other PCCs has written to the London Mayor Sadiq Khan expressing dismay and dissatisfaction at the capital’s tactics. 

 

“The most disturbing of these proposals is the £5000 payment to incentivise police officers to transfer from their current forces into the Metropolitan Police.  All forces have their own uplift* target to achieve and we are all operating in a competitive employment market within the South-East that presents challenges for us all. 

 

As Police and Crime Commissioners for forces where we all met our uplift target last year, it is notable that the Metropolitan Police failed to hit its recruitment target and yet still received full funding from the Home Office.  This was a financial option not made available to any other force.  Given the imbalance of funding that already exists between the Met and other forces, the use of this additional income to encourage transferees from neighbouring forces is therefore particularly offensive and short-sighted.” 

 

Matthew Scott added,   “The failure of the Met Police to recruit will now be felt in neighbouring police forces as they selfishly seek to poach our experienced and trained officers to meet their own targets.  Policing works best when we work together, but clearly the Met is not co-operating here.  

 

I have always argued officers should be better paid, but it must be a level playing field across all forces.” 

 

Below is the letter sent to Sadiq Khan, signed by several PCCs including Matthew Scott.

 

ENDS  

 

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NOTE TO EDITORS: 

 

*The government’s uplift programme promised 20,000 additional police officers by March 2023.