An announcement to cut police pay is risky. They last marched over Jacqui Smith’s failure to backdate a pay rise so the reaction to a pay cut should be fierce. As the maxim says: to be in power is to choose. Theresa May’s speech in Westminster this morning laid out her decision. She faced a 20% budget decrease and has chosen to go for pay cuts rather than redundancies in frontline staff.
It has already brought forth accusations of double speak and undervaluing police officers from the Police Federation. It will also mark a very difficult balancing act for May, part of which is not her fault. Justice secretary Ken Clarke’s controversial prisons policy faces opposition from those in Conservative ranks who believe hard sentencing works. While the Justice and Home offices are separate, their responsibilities – protecting the public – merge into one priority for the government. The government does not want to look like it takes risks with law and order.
There have also been criticisms of May’s handling of the Home Office from senior MPs. One told me recently that he wasn’t sure what the home secretary’s crime policy was and felt there was a sense of drift at the Home Office. The police may well be the last great unreformed public service, but that makes it some battle to choose. The Home Office says police understand that pay, rather than job, cuts are the better option. I've interviewed Theresa May several times but have never seen her diplomacy skills in action. They will now need to be very impressive indeed to avoid angry police marching on the streets.
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