Today Rebecca Harris MP met with the Police Federation to discuss the worrying number of assaults on officers and how they can work together to create a safer working environment.
Their research suggests that an officer is assaulted every 22 minutes in England and Wales - a staggering and unacceptable 23,394 incidents in England and Wales last year. Officer assaults are vastly under-reported and it is a bigger problem than current figures demonstrate.
Nick Smart, chairman of West Yorkshire Police Federation, said:
"An assault on a police officer is an assault on society and more needs to be done to keep them safe. Officers accept the risk and the public also understand the dangers of the job, but the amount of assaults taking place is alarming,"
Rebecca also spoke in the Police Officer Safety debate in the House of Commons earlier this month to show her support for Police Officers. Speaking in the Chamber she said:
“I was shocked to learn that there were just under 700 assaults in Essex alone. However, many more go unreported, sometimes because officers feel the offence is so commonplace it will not be pursued and, more worryingly, that the sentence will perhaps not reflect the assault’s effect on the officer. I warmly welcome the Minister’s announcement that police forces will be required to record offences against officers properly as part of their crime statistics. Our police service is absolutely second to none in the world, which is why they need support from us that is second to none.”
Over the last year Rebecca has taken part in the Police Service Parliamentary Scheme. This has given her a unique window into the world of everyday life in the police force and the tasks they are asked to undertake on our behalf. Rebecca has shadowed various departments in Essex Police and has seen the incredible work that members of our police service do daily and the challenges and dangers that they face in our communities.
Rebecca also met with the Essex Chair of Police Federation Steve Taylor who commented:
“As chairman of the Essex police federation representing rank and file officers in Essex I was grateful for Mrs Harris spending time with me and hearing the concerns we have around how the information on officer assaults is collected, and how those convicted of assaults against police are dealt with by the criminal justice system. As I look for support to introduce spit hoods to protect officers, look to increase body worn video to capture evidence and TASER to deal with those intent on bringing violence to bare on our communities, I was heartened by Mrs Harris’s interest and support as well as her comments in the recent debate in the house.”