CAMPAIGN Keep police public
police services were up for sale. Employees are also in the dark. At a meeting which was supposed to be a ‘myth busting’ exercise, staff asked 14 critical questions of senior members of the West Midlands Police procurement team but they were unable to give proper answers to any of them.
Among the questions were: What areas of business are up for grabs? How will the force ensure the security of information? And will I still have a job next year?
Peter Allenson, Unite national officer, said West Midlands and Surrey police forces had realised that the public did not want privatization, but he warned the plans have not been dropped altogether.
“Privatisation has nothing to do with making our streets safer it has everything to do with profit. It is not about making the police force more efficient – it’s about transferring our crucial public services to the private sector, which has a totally
different ethos and set of priorities. This is a very dangerous.”
In April home secretary Theresa May was jeered at the Police Federation annual conference in Bournemouth as she defended 20 per cent funding cuts to policing and the most radical reforms for 30 years.
Amid heckling from delegates she promised not to privatise the police. “You already are,” shouted one officer.
Concern is not limited to the federation, which represents ranks up to and including chief inspector. Derbyshire’s chief constable Mick Creedon branded it ‘a dangerous precedent
for the future of law
enforcement’. He added, “When people call Derbyshire Constabulary I want the calls to be taken by Derbyshire Constabulary – not a company like G4S,” he said.
Tony Melville, chief constable of Gloucestershre, even joined more than 20,000 police officers last month in a protest march against
cuts
privatisation. Mr Melville is quitting over the changes.
But their colleague in the West Midlands readily volunteered his Birmingham-based operation when the Home Office was casting round for guinea pigs.
There might be an ulterior motive. There is the small matter of a knighthood. Provided they have pandered sufficiently to the government of the day, all his predecessors have received a tap on each shoulder from the monarch’s sword.
And after retirement there’s always a chance of a seat for ‘Sir Christopher’ on the board of a company which successfully bid to undertake police services.
Follow the campaign via
www.unitetheunion.org
and Who’s bidding?
Unite understands the following organisations (grouped into consortiums) are bidding for work at West Midlands police.
• BT/Vanguard/Reliance • Blue Star • Capita • G4S with Cap Gemini and Seria • KBR with IBM • Logika/Northgate/
Amy.com • HP/Serco
Police emergency – Unite police staff protest, joined by Robocop, the 1980s film cyborg that replaced real police
18 uniteWORKS July/August 2012
Some of the bidders’ track records leave a lot to be desired. Our investgations have shown they include a company with no experience of police work, an organisation alleged to have avoided tax, organisations involved in strike breaking, a company that closed the workers' final salary pension scheme while paying executive directors up to £400,000 in pensions alone. The same organisation has also been accused of human rights abuses and involved in a catalogue of scandals. To find out more visit
www.unitetheunion.org /pdf/4878_TaxAvoidance_4.pdf
John Harris/
www.reportdigital.co.uk
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