Policing crisis: Budget cuts are leaving detectives overworked and demoralised
POLICING is on the brink of a new crisis with detectives reporting that budget cuts and overwork mean they are not doing their jobs properly.
56 per cent of CID officers claim that slashing of police budgets has had an impact on their morale
Almost three quarters of CID officers say they do not provide a service to the public all or most of the time.
More than half – 56 per cent – claim the slashing of police budgets has had a huge impact on their morale with a quarter saying their physical and mental health has been badly affected.
A staggering 90 per cent revealed they had been forced to take sick leave to escape stress and work pressure.
The findings come from a survey of 7,800 detectives in England and Wales conducted by the Police Federation.
Amber Rudd is facing increased pressure from police officers over reduced police budgets
There is a serious demand and capacity imbalance in this high pressure role and I have seen the toll it is taking on colleagues
They will put pressure on Home Secretary Amber Rudd to take action over reduced police budgets.
Karen Stephens, secretary of the federation’s national detective forum, said: “We cannot ignore there is a crisis in detective policing.
“There is a serious demand and capacity imbalance in this high pressure role and I have seen the toll it is taking on colleagues.”