Long arm of the law is cut back

Published on Monday 5 July 2010 09:50

CASH-STRAPPED police chiefs have slashed the amount of overtime available to officers in a bid to reduce the £7 million annual bill for extra hours.

Senior officers have been ordered to carry out "better management" of duty rosters to ensure officers are not working unnecessarily.

Consultations are also under way with the Crown Office to reduce occasions when officers are called to give evidence in court while on overtime.

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The cutbacks are being made in a bid to slash costs following projections that the force may face a 20 per cent funding cut over the next five years.

Police chiefs said that "tighter measures" would be introduced to reduce overtime as they acknowledged that the force was "having to look where savings can be made".

Jackie Muller, secretary of the Lothian and Borders branch of the Scottish Police Federation, said the federation had been in talks with the force about reducing overtime.

She said: "Officers carry out overtime because there is a need to remain on duty to deal with incidents. That covers the majority of overtime, with the policing of major events where officers have to work on rest days forming the second part.

"From our understanding, the reduction in overtime will come from managing the duty roster more effectively to ensure officers are not working unnecessarily.

"It's not about cutting wages, but working and delivering a service more effectively."

Police work a contracted 40 hours a week. Only officers of sergeant or constable rank receive overtime payments.

Police asked to work a bank holiday or rest day with fewer than five days' notice get double time, and working a rest day with fewer than 15 days' notice is paid at time-and-a-half. Other overtime is paid at time-and-a-third.

One constable was able to rack up 17,550 during eight months of 2008 by putting in hundreds of extra hours.

Councillor Iain Whyte, convener of the police board, said: "There is a general plan to reduce overtime requirements. Some of that will come from better management of duty rosters.

"I'm not directly concerned about reducing the time officers spend on duty through overtime. My biggest concern would be failing to make budget savings that mean frontline officers are lost. I would rather have officers kept in service to be deployed rather than lose them altogether."

Last month, police chiefs were forced to impose a recruitment freeze on support staff and scrap plans for a new headquarters in the Leith docks development.

Chief Superintendent Gill Imery, divisional commander, said: "We are considering our overall spend on various areas of business.

"Part of this is reducing overtime, and this has been introduced for all officers."