THE Home Secretary has advised the police pay review body to stick to the Treasury\u2019s limit of an average one per cent pay rise for officers next year.<\/p>\n
Amber Rudd wrote to the Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB) Chairman, David Lebrecht, reiterating that his recommendations on how to apply the officer pay award for 2017\/18 should be \u201cin accordance\u201d with a letter from the Chief Secretary to the Treasury.<\/span><\/p>\n Greg Hands, who was Chief Secretary at the time, informed the body that \u201cthe government would fund public sector workforces for pay awards of an average one per cent a year, up to 2019\/2020\u2033.<\/p>\n Ms Rudd also said she would be \u201cparticularly interested\u201d to see further police-led proposals on how a \u201cfair and sustainable reward structure can be achieved\u201d.<\/p>\n But added: \u201cAs in previous years, in considering the appropriate level of pay for police officers I would ask you to have regard to the standing terms of reference as set out in previous remit letters.\u201d<\/p>\n She also asked for recommendations on how best to apply \u201cshort-term, targeted measures to address recruitment and retention pressures\u201d and to \u201cprovide observations on proposals to introduce police officer apprenticeships in 2018, in relation to setting pay at an appropriate level\u201d.<\/p>\n Ms Rudd added that the PRRB\u2019s recommendations should be considered in the broader context of the work being undertaken by chief constables and the College of Policing on the development of a longer-term pay strategy. This includes a \u201cmore flexible and sustainable reward structure linked to role, competence and skills\u201d as well as the \u201cimplementation of a new five-level organisational structure\u201d, she said.<\/p>\n Written submissions to the PRRB, which considers police pay, must be made by mid-December, and then interested parties \u2013 such as staff associations \u2013 will hold further discussions before the PRRB submits its findings to the Prime Minister and Home Secretary in May.<\/p>\n A pay announcement for September 2017 will be made in the summer.<\/p>\n