Police officers face a \u201cperverse\u201d system weighed against them when it comes to disciplinary action, it has been warned.<\/p>\n
Steve Kent, Chair of South Yorkshire Police Federation, urged senior figures to apply common sense rather than let cops be \u201cdragged through the mud\u201d.<\/p>\n
His comments came after Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley saying the system that held officers to account was not \u201ctimely, fair and respected\u201d by all.<\/p>\n
And Steve said there needed to be a new test that secures the correct outcome via a fair test.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cThe system is heavily weighed-up against officers.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a system that can be perverse because it applies too much weight to one side of the argument and doesn\u2019t provide enough weight for the evidence and the views of the officers.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere needs to be far more common sense and cops not being dragged through the mud and suspended for long period of times \u2013 at the public cost \u2013 for stuff that should be dealt with very quickly and very easily.\u201d<\/p>\n
Steve also called for a system that punished those behind false allegations made against police officers.<\/p>\n
He said it was understood that most complaints were found to be either false or not held, and urged leaders to create a deterrent for those behind \u201cvexatious\u201d claims.<\/p>\n
During a speech delivered at the Police Foundation in September, Sir Mark also called for a different system to be put in place.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cI can think of no other country where an officer rushing towards the scene of a terrorist attack, who makes a mistake, would be pursued for misconduct and prosecuted over four years.\u201d<\/p>\n
Steve added that better training and support for supervisors would help to deal with low-level incidents in a fairer way.<\/p>\n
He said empowering supervisors would prevent issues escalating and would be more efficient for the public purse.<\/p>\n
He explained: \u201cThere seems to be, in our force, a lack of confidence to do that, and I think that\u2019s replicated throughout the country.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe also need to have more conversations about the IOPC, because sometimes they look at things through a different lens and through way too much scrutiny.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat can, again, result in officers being restricted or suspended for long periods of times when, actually, a very quick process can just deal with it, get the facts, get it dealt with and get it put to bed.\u201d<\/p>\n