Monthly Archive for December, 2009

If Carlsberg Made Justice Secretaries…………

Published on December 31, 2009 in 1. Closed

written by inspectorgadget from POLICE INSPECTOR BLOG

Jack went to a Grammar School – his party oppose selective education..

Jack received a full grant at University – his party kept student loans.

Jack refused to join the Cadet Corps at school on conscientious grounds – his party have sent thousands of soldiers to war.

Jack admitted using MP’s expenses to claim full council tax bill despite only paying a 50% rate – he is the Justice Secretary.

Jack ordered a review into police use of cautions in Nov 2009 – his son escaped a criminal record by being cautioned for drugs offences in 1997.

Jack thinks Case Files take one hour, and that most policemen want to stay in a warm police station – you choose.

The original post can be found http://inspectorgadget.wordpress.com/2009/12/31/if-carlsberg-made-justice-secretaries/

Goodbye 2009 Welcome Much Of The Same

Published on December 31, 2009 in Uncategorized. Closed

written by Stressed Out Cop from Stressed Out Cop

One thing I can say I've learnt from this year, is to be more open. I therefore read the comments of Jack Straw and think why? You've read my last post where we didn't get the chance to sit around drinking tea in the warm. If it was really quiet we would have done so, but as a one off on what should have been a special day where basic humanity dictates, that even the criminals take a day off. I can't even remember the last time I heard a 99 being called.

I think the truth is that NuLabor have never liked the police service and always seen us as a necessary evil. Perhaps Jack Straw is just having another Pinochet moment !! All the political tinkering has never been about providing a better service to victim's but more creating some sort of centrally controlled arm of the state. If the Tories had attempted to pass half the laws this lot created, the masses would have been rioting in the streets. Instead everybody just let it happen because life was comfortable and nobody cared that it was all on borrowed money. They don't need the police any more as they head to oblivion so resort to type.

It's been a bad year of PR for the police service and maybe that suits certain people. I've heard several rumours about the year's hence. One is that our pension contributions will rise to 14% instead of the current 11%, with no increase on the actual pension pay out. Another is that after 2012 officer's will be pensioned off early. One thing for definite is that there will be cuts in officer numbers. Will it matter to the front line? I think not as we are already working on "less". The community team's are currently red circled but as I've said before those models will be re-visited.

A couple of high profile police trials coming up in the New Year will drag us down more, whatever the outcome. I hear Michael Mansfield might be out of retirement to represent Ali Dizaei, and I've stood up already and hopefully called it right for PS Smellie from the G20.

I usually at Year's End raise a glass to those I've put away. For the past 10 year's or so this has averaged 20 to 25 people a year inside because of me helping out on certain operations. It made all the stresses and long hours worthwhile. This year I've decided to cut back because it wasn't actually doing me much good health wise. I'm not even beating myself up for not doing so much but can still have a slurp to the 5 inside for this year. So sorry Jack you've had your pound of flesh from me and the difference between you and me next year. I'll still be here.

The original post can be found http://stressedoutcop.blogspot.com/2009/12/goodbye-2009-welcome-much-of-same.html

Jack Straw burns all bridges!

Published on December 31, 2009 in Uncategorized. Closed

written by Disgruntled from Disgruntled

Words nearly fail me on this one:

Jack Straw 'sceptical' about overworked police

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8436110.stm

My favourite part is:

"Some police officers, whatever they say, actually quite enjoy being in the police station in the warm".

As opposed to what exactly? Standing out on a point in -2℃?

Well I never! I would have thought 'Police Officers' would enjoy freezing their bollocks off instead - bunch of weirdo sadists that they are...

Have a good New Year everyone, let's make sure these numpties are out of No 10 in 2010 for ALL our sakes!

The original post can be found http://disgruntledcop.blogspot.com/2009/12/jack-straw-burns-all-bridges.html

Happy New Year

Published on December 31, 2009 in Bureaucracy, Jack Straw, Police and warm. Closed

written by Lex Ferenda from The Thinking Policeman: A Police Officer's Blog

In the warm, drinking tea again.

I would like to wish Jack Straw a Happy New Year, but I won’t. He gave an interview today during which he stated that the police aren’t really bogged down with paperwork. We just like hanging around in police stations where it is warm.

A number of recent Home Secretary’s have upset the police with their lack of understanding of policing issues. As a former Home Secretary and now the Secretary of State for Justice I expected better. The gaffs this Government have made with regard to the police have been beyond compare. Jacquie Smith did really well shafting us on our pay deal resulting in a protest march of over 20,000 off duty police officers.

We have had more Home Secretary’s over the last decade than I have had prisoners and a few hours in the warm. Most of them, including Mr Straw, departed because of their incompetence. I thought Mr Straw would have learnt his lesson and thought a little before putting his foot in it on the subject of police bureaucracy.

I wrote recently about one of the worst pieces of bureaucracy and its interpretation by the Surveillance Commissioners. This was the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000. (RIPA.) One of a myriad of pieces of legislation that has been introduced in recent years and which keeps dozens of police officers skiving in the warm, filling out forms, ticking the right boxes, risk assessing everything. We love it! All this form filling stops us having to go out and do our job. Mr Straw introduced RIPA when he was Home Secretary, along with lots of other legislation that keeps us in the warm.

I see that Jack Straw’s father was banged up at Her Majesty’s pleasure during the Second World War because he was a conscientious objector. Did he prefer it in a nice warm prison rather than going to fight? I doubt it. I suspect there was more to it than that. I thought, Mr Straw, you might be a bit more understanding.

Happy New Year!

The original post can be found http://thethinkingpoliceman.blogspot.com/2009/12/happy-new-year.html

Bliadhna Mhath Ùr

Published on December 31, 2009 in Uncategorized. Closed

written by Noddy from Welcome to Toy Town™

Last year I was Twisting in My Sobriety.

This year..... well I have some tough decisions to make.

Those working tonight - stay safe.

Those not, and all the other Toy Town™ Teamsters, have a blast. I'm gonna!

All the best to one and all for 2010.

Slàinte Mhath!

© Noddy
Published by Toy Town™ Times

The original post can be found http://uisgebeathaagusleann.blogspot.com/2009/12/bliadhna-mhath-ur.html

Police are Wasters – Fact

Published on December 31, 2009 in The Job - Comment. Closed

written by 200 from 200 Weeks

At least they are according to Justice Minister Jack Straw.

Interviewed on Radio 4, in response to a point that police officers were often overworked, he said: “Some police officers, whatever they say, actually quite enjoy being in the police station in the warm. We are dealing with human beings, but we are also dealing with the kind of discipline and culture in the police service.”

In response to criticisms that officers were taking up to four hours to complete their paperwork on a case, he said: “good police officers will take an hour to fill in the same forms because they want to get out and catch criminals”.

Naturally, the Police Federation are up in arms about the comments. Simon Reed, vice-chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said the remarks were “irresponsible and inflammatory“.

“It wasn’t police officers who brought in 3,000 new laws, it wasn’t police officers who brought in a 30-page prosecution file and it wasn’t police officers who brought in multiple forms and authorities to use a pair of binoculars,” he said.

“This was all done by politicians. Police officers are not the architects of bureaucracy, they and the public are the victims of it.”

It probably won’t go down too well with the Federation or many readers of this blog but to deny Mr Straw’s comments out of hand is to deny an uncomfortable truth that there are officers who would rather spend their time in the warmth of the police station. There are officers who have made a whole career out of it. Many of them are not front line officers, they are people who spend a few years trying to get into the uniform, done their two years’ probation on the streets & then made a career out of going from one office job to the next. I know officers in my own force who haven’t been on the streets for 27 years or more.

There are also a certain section of frontline officers who spend more time trying to avoid jobs than they do actually attending them. Mr Straw is quite correct in some respects, though I’m not sure the problem is as widespread as his comments appear to suggest. I defy any of the many, many hardworking – and yes, overworked – officers not to be able to come up with an example of someone at their nick who always seems to take so much longer doing their paperwork than the rest of the shift, or who often ‘don’t hear’ the radio when the control room is trying to send them to a job, or take the long way round in the hope that another officer will get their first & pick up all the work.

When I worked the streets, I knew officers like this & now I’m in the control room I know it even more. When you work with the same people all the time you soon get to know who are the workers & who are the shirkers.

The shame is that the loudest comments about the police are always the critical ones, the vast bulk of very hard working & dedicated officers hardly get a mention. And, thinking about it, I guess this post is just another in a long line of that type from many quarters. I’ve always said that we in the police are good at doing ourselves down & rubbish at bigging ourselves up.

Perhaps 2010 is the time to start talking more of the good news in the police service.

Happy New Year & a prosperous & safe 2010 to you all….

The original post can be found http://200weeks.police999.com/archives/2441

Just Lock Up Baddies

Published on December 31, 2009 in Uncategorized. Closed

written by PC Bloggs from PC Bloggs - a Twenty-first Century Police Officer

I am relieved to find out today that according to Jack Straw, I am not overworked after all. It turns out I rather like staying indoors tucked up in the warm with my paperwork.

The evidence for this is that "some forces do very much better than others" and it is therefore a matter of "culture and discipline" if we're snowed under with paperwork. As it happens, I totally agree with Mr Straw. My force, for example, is one of the best in the country at recording crime, auditing custody records and thinking up new ways to keep criminals out of court. The culture of Blandshire Constabulary is to meet targets, provide a never-ending audit trail of everything we do, and produce endless reports and policies explaining how it's never our fault if someone dies. All under the banner of "No Targets. Just Lock Up Baddies." * As a result of our efforts, Blandshire is rated pretty highly at the moment.

Funnily enough, what activities do you suppose are the ones that keep police officers tucked up indoors in the warmth? Might they perchance include auditing/audit-trail-creating and policy-writing? Might they include attending strategy and risk assessment meetings, pie-chart creation and poster design?

Police officers don't care about having to fill out forms, complete files and write lengthy statements, where they are clearly vital pieces of evidence forming part of an investigation. We care about having to do these things, plus a dozen others, for no good reason whatsoever. We care about doing things in order to tick boxes that trick people like Jack Straw into thinking that our force is one of the ones that is "up for it... really motoring".

Here's an officer who nicked someone to get tucked up in the warm.
(Scroll to about 3min in if you get bored)

I know where the Justice Secretary drew his conclusions about police officers wanting to stay in the warmth. All over police blogs, in the papers and in the canteens (the ones that are still open), officers have a language that includes talking about "nicking someone to get back inside in the warm", or "tucking ourselves up with a file for a couple of hours and a cup of tea". My book is full of anecdotes about trying to get off the streets and into a plate of cookies. Well there's one anecdote like that. These stories and this language are part and parcel of a job that should entail being 90% ON the streets and OUT in the cold - that's why we talk about it so much.

So Jack Straw's comments are insulting on a number of levels:
Because they infer that his government's way of measuring successful forces bears an actual relationship to reality.
Because he has utterly missed the point of what frustrates officers about the bureaucratic culture in Britain.
Because he has inferred that front-line police officers have some kind of control over how they spend the majority of their time.
Because he has unwittingly (or God forbid wittingly) echoed the deep feelings of a portion of society who always suspected police officers might secretly enjoy paperwork.
Finally, because he seems to have no clue, despite his position, what life is really like for a front-line bobby under his government.

If his are the words of the man partly responsible for choosing the way forward for the British police force, what hope is there?

Happy New Year, Mr Straw. I'm working.**

* This slogan has never and will never feature in a Blandshire Constabulary propaganda campaign. Because there are and we can't.
** By the words "I'm working", one should not infer that I am, at the time of writing, working. Merely it is meant to imply and inform my good reader that I will be, over the festive period, working some or all of the hours of the bank holiday day/days/nights.

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'Diary of an On-Call Girl' is available in some bookstores and online.

The original post can be found http://pcbloggs.blogspot.com/2009/12/just-lock-up-baddies.html

ANOTHER YEAR OVER…

Published on December 31, 2009 in Uncategorized. Closed

written by The Coppersblog Team from The Policeman's Blog

The 'Voice of the Resistance' explains why people hate the police: it's because the police don't like them blowing up speed cameras, apparently.

At least in the old days it was because everyone was being fitted up!

A few of the things police did this year, apart from trying to catch libertarian pyrotechnician speed freaks:

They were shot dead, stabbed to death, drowned when bridges collapsed, were killed as they put out 'diversion' signs at accident scenes.

Those who weren't killed were routinely spat at in the face, threatened with guns and attacked by mobs for asking teenagers to pick up litter.

They were 'hailed a hero' as they rugby tackled muggers while on holiday in New York, saved the lives of unconscious babies in Northumbria, jumped into rivers to save drowning men and kung fu kicked armed robbers after stumbling across post office raids while off duty, having only popped out for a pint of milk.

They recovered the bodies of suicides, old people who'd been lying dead in a pool of their own goo for a month or two, carried the bodies of toddlers from smashed up cars and kicked down the doors of houses where fathers had shot their four-year-old daughters, their ex-girlfriends and themselves. Nice.

All that, plus telling you the time of day and where the nearest Argos is.

Here's to a better 2010.

The original post can be found http://coppersblog.blogspot.com/2009/12/another-year-over.html