Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the Policing Productivity review on levels of theft from shops.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government recognises the impact shoplifting has on businesses and communities. The Crime Survey for England and Wales shows neighbourhood crime is down 48% compared to findings from 2010; however, Police Recorded Crime figures show shoplifting offences increased by 32% in the 12 months to September 2023. Statistics also show the number of people charged with shoplifting has risen by 34%, showing the police are acting.
We have recently taken significant steps to improve the police response to retail crime, including shoplifting. In October 2023, the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) published the Retail Crime Action Plan. All forces across England and Wales have committed to prioritise police attendance at the scene where violence has been used towards shop staff, where an offender has been detained by store security, and where evidence needs to be secured and can only be done by police personnel. Additionally, where CCTV or other digital images are secured, police will run this through the Police National Database to aid efforts to identify offenders. This builds on the NPCC commitment that police will follow up on all reasonable lines of enquiry.
The Government published an enhanced Action Plan, "Fighting Retail Crime: More action" on 10 April. This Plan highlights key areas of work to tackle retail crime, including introduction of a new standalone office for assaults on retail workers; additional electronic monitoring for prolific shoplifters; and increasing use of facial recognition technology.
The Policing Productivity Review was published on 20 November 2023, which concludes there is the potential to free up around 38 million hours of police time per year within five years. This equates to over 20,000 police officers. The Government is working with policing to consider its recommendations, freeing up police officers’ time which can be reprioritised to enable officers to spend more time fighting crime on the front line, in line with local priorities set by Police and Crime Commissioners. This additional police time could be used to support delivery of the Retail Crime Action Plan. Evaluation on the impact of the Policing Productivity Review will be part of the remit of the new Centre for Police Productivity which was announced at the Spring Budget 2024.
We are continuing to work closely with the retail sector, security representatives, trade associations and policing through the National Retail Crime Steering Group (NRCSG), which meets on a quarterly basis, to ensure the response to retail crime, including shoplifting, is as robust as it can be.
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the contract agreed by his Department with IPSOS-MORI Ltd. on 18 April 2024, reference 412008/1329297, if he will publish the order specification set out in Schedule 20 of that agreement.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
We can confirm that the statement of requirements document has been added to the contract finder notice and can be viewed here: ASB Hot Spot Survey - Contracts Finder
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to increase the number and proportion of (a) police officers and (b) other police staff who are female.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The 20,000-officer uplift provided a once in a generation opportunity to support forces to become more representative of the communities they serve, and to create a foundation from which forces can continue to make further improvements in future.
As a result of the police uplift, the police officer workforce is now more representative than it has ever been. As at 31 March 2023, there are 53,080 female police officers (headcount) which represents the highest number on record, accounting for 35.5% of officers.
The learning generated during the Uplift has been captured and shared with forces via the online Uplift Hub. This is now being used by forces to support ongoing recruitment activity and strong evidence-led retention strategies to support officers in their careers. Dedicated learning is also available on the Uplift Hub on improving representation.
In order to support forces to recruit and retain officers from diverse backgrounds and promote inclusivity, the College of Policing has also created a toolkit for forces to support the development of flexible and/or part-time working pathways as well as a Workplace Adjustment Toolkit for forces.
Through the Police Covenant, we have also appointed the first Chief Medical Officer for policing who is developing a national health strategy for all staff and officers.
Whilst progress has been made, there remains more work to be done by forces to increase representation in policing. The Government also continues to work with forces to ensure that they put the right support in place to enable officers and staff with additional needs, disabilities or other health conditions to enable them to thrive in their careers and continue to serve the public.
Asked by: Nick Thomas-Symonds (Labour - Torfaen)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming for a digital future: 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data, updated on 29 February 2024, what steps his Department has taken to mitigate the risks of red-rated legacy IT systems.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO), in the Cabinet Office, has established a programme to support departments managing legacy IT. CDDO has agreed a framework to identify ‘red-rated’ systems, indicating high levels of risk surrounding certain assets within the IT estate. Departments have committed to have remediation plans in place for these systems by next year (2025). It is not appropriate to release sensitive information held about specific red-rated systems or more detailed plans for remediation within the Home Department’s IT estate, as this information could indicate which systems are at risk, and may highlight potential security vulnerabilities.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police officers have retired due to ill health in the last five years.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office collects and publishes data annually on the number of police officers leaving the police service and their reasons for leaving, including medical retirements, as at 31 March each year, in the ‘Police Workforce, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-workforce-england-and-wales.
Information on the number of police officers leaving the police service by reason for leaving, including medical retirements, between the years ending 31 March 2007 and 2023 can be found in the ‘Leavers Open Data Table’ here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/64ba76662059dc000d5d27c0/open-data-table-police-workforce-leavers-260723.ods
The Home Office does not hold data on the number of police officers taking medical retirement in Scotland or Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of his Department’s (a) advertising and (b) marketing expenditure was on (i) local newspapers in print and online, (ii) national newspapers in print and online, (iii) social media, (iv) search engines, (v) broadcast and on-demand television and (vi) other channels in the most recent year for which data is available.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office does not hold the information broken down in this way internally.
Asked by: Siobhain McDonagh (Labour - Mitcham and Morden)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will list the companies that are licensed to supply tasers to police forces in the UK.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office approves less lethal weapons for police use following extensive technical and medical assessments. Decisions about the selection and purchase of approved less lethal weapons are primarily for chief officers.
The only company currently approved to supply Conductive Energy Devices (CEDs) to UK police forces is Axon Enterprise.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he is taking steps to encourage (a) alternative working and (b) other arrangements to support people in police forces with (i) additional needs, (ii) disabilities and (iii) other health conditions.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The 20,000-officer uplift provided a once in a generation opportunity to support forces to become more representative of the communities they serve, and to create a foundation from which forces can continue to make further improvements in future.
As a result of the police uplift, the police officer workforce is now more representative than it has ever been. As at 31 March 2023, there are 53,080 female police officers (headcount) which represents the highest number on record, accounting for 35.5% of officers.
The learning generated during the Uplift has been captured and shared with forces via the online Uplift Hub. This is now being used by forces to support ongoing recruitment activity and strong evidence-led retention strategies to support officers in their careers. Dedicated learning is also available on the Uplift Hub on improving representation.
In order to support forces to recruit and retain officers from diverse backgrounds and promote inclusivity, the College of Policing has also created a toolkit for forces to support the development of flexible and/or part-time working pathways as well as a Workplace Adjustment Toolkit for forces.
Through the Police Covenant, we have also appointed the first Chief Medical Officer for policing who is developing a national health strategy for all staff and officers.
Whilst progress has been made, there remains more work to be done by forces to increase representation in policing. The Government also continues to work with forces to ensure that they put the right support in place to enable officers and staff with additional needs, disabilities or other health conditions to enable them to thrive in their careers and continue to serve the public.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he is taking steps to encourage (a) flexible working and (b) other practices to support gender-inclusivity in police forces.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The 20,000-officer uplift provided a once in a generation opportunity to support forces to become more representative of the communities they serve, and to create a foundation from which forces can continue to make further improvements in future.
As a result of the police uplift, the police officer workforce is now more representative than it has ever been. As at 31 March 2023, there are 53,080 female police officers (headcount) which represents the highest number on record, accounting for 35.5% of officers.
The learning generated during the Uplift has been captured and shared with forces via the online Uplift Hub. This is now being used by forces to support ongoing recruitment activity and strong evidence-led retention strategies to support officers in their careers. Dedicated learning is also available on the Uplift Hub on improving representation.
In order to support forces to recruit and retain officers from diverse backgrounds and promote inclusivity, the College of Policing has also created a toolkit for forces to support the development of flexible and/or part-time working pathways as well as a Workplace Adjustment Toolkit for forces.
Through the Police Covenant, we have also appointed the first Chief Medical Officer for policing who is developing a national health strategy for all staff and officers.
Whilst progress has been made, there remains more work to be done by forces to increase representation in policing. The Government also continues to work with forces to ensure that they put the right support in place to enable officers and staff with additional needs, disabilities or other health conditions to enable them to thrive in their careers and continue to serve the public.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to improve the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of female police officers.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The 20,000-officer uplift provided a once in a generation opportunity to support forces to become more representative of the communities they serve, and to create a foundation from which forces can continue to make further improvements in future.
As a result of the police uplift, the police officer workforce is now more representative than it has ever been. As at 31 March 2023, there are 53,080 female police officers (headcount) which represents the highest number on record, accounting for 35.5% of officers.
The learning generated during the Uplift has been captured and shared with forces via the online Uplift Hub. This is now being used by forces to support ongoing recruitment activity and strong evidence-led retention strategies to support officers in their careers. Dedicated learning is also available on the Uplift Hub on improving representation.
In order to support forces to recruit and retain officers from diverse backgrounds and promote inclusivity, the College of Policing has also created a toolkit for forces to support the development of flexible and/or part-time working pathways as well as a Workplace Adjustment Toolkit for forces.
Through the Police Covenant, we have also appointed the first Chief Medical Officer for policing who is developing a national health strategy for all staff and officers.
Whilst progress has been made, there remains more work to be done by forces to increase representation in policing. The Government also continues to work with forces to ensure that they put the right support in place to enable officers and staff with additional needs, disabilities or other health conditions to enable them to thrive in their careers and continue to serve the public.