Politicians must act now to support policing, BTP Conference hears

THE time for talking is over – politicians must act to support policing now, the British Transport Police Federation Conference has heard.

Federation Chairman Nigel Goodband told delegates that if ministers truly cared about keeping the public safe, they would make sure that forces, including the BTP, are properly funded.

“When a major incident occurs, we have all seen the politicians rushing to tell everyone how proud they are of Britain’s police, how brave and wonderful they are. Great, thanks for that!” he said.

“But where are those same politicians when Chief Officers up and down the country are telling them that the cuts they are imposing are affecting front line services? These cuts are reducing the number of officers available to protect the public.

“Crime is back on the increase, particularly violent crime on the railways – I am tired of listening to politicians of all persuasions who don’t seem to understand policing.

Counter terrorism funding for the BTP was a case in point he said. The Home Secretary recently announced an extra £101m to combat terrorism but the BTP won’t receive a penny of that money, even though transport hubs are often top targets.

“Nearly every terrorist incident in recent years has occurred within our jurisdiction. The BTP is expected to deal with this,” he told delegates at the conference in Edinburgh.

“How many people realise that the BTP is the only public facing police force that does not receive any money from the government for fighting terrorism?

“We have, quite rightly, introduced our own counter terrorism unit and this unit will help to keep the travelling public safe but we have received zero, nada, nothing.”

It means that the force has had to cut services in other areas and will now be left with one control room to oversee BTP operations across England, Wales and Scotland, leaving it at risk of being ‘dreadfully exposed’.

“So, to politicians I say, enough of your words – talking may be what you do best, but the time for talking is over, now is a time for doing.

“If you value policing and if you value the BTP, then make sure we have the proper funding to keep the travelling public safe from terrorism.”

Nigel also said the number of assaults being carried out on officers (on average 15 officers are assaulted every week) were unacceptable. He believes more funds could aid the situation but was grateful for the support offered by the force

“Chief Constable, thank you for your support on spit guards. Thank you for your commitment to issuing Taser and Body Worn Video, please know, we absolutely do value this,” he said.

“Thank you also for the review you are carrying out on assaults on police. We look forward to any measures that will help reduce assaults on our members.

“But we do recognise that this is also a funding issue. These protections come at a cost and you need the necessary budget to meet your commitments.”