Half of MoD Police 'consider leaving'

12 July 2011

Nearly half of all Ministry of Defence Police officers are considering looking for alternative work as uncertainty over the future of the force continues, a survey has found.

Research by the Defence Police Federation, the MoD Police's staff association, found that 44.9 per cent of officers were considering looking for alternative work early as cut plans remained unpublished.

In the survey of 332 MoD Police officers, 43 per cent were also unsure about whether they would have a job in 12 months time.

The survey showed that 86 per cent of MoD Police officers said their job was more difficult than it was 12 months ago, with 60.5 per cent of those officers attributing the difficulty to the distraction and lack of information about planned MoD cuts.

The research also found that 67.7 per cent of officers expect cuts to the MOD Police to significantly reduce levels of security for MOD personnel, assets and facilities.

The DPF has accused the government of 'dithering' over its cuts plans and believes that options currently under consideration by ministers could result in the loss of more than 1,000 jobs and budget reductions of 35 percent within the force.

National Chairman Eamon Keating is to use an address on 13 July to warn MPs and Peers that cuts will leave officers unable to meet security requirements and will fail to deliver the long-term savings sought by ministers.

Eamon Keating, National Chairman of the Defence Police Federation, said: "These findings highlight the disturbingly low morale among frontline police officers, who have absolutely no confidence that the current high standards of security for the MoD's personnel, assets and facilities can be maintained if the department cuts costs further.

"There is a very real danger that this uncertainty and unrealistic work demands will cause us to lose large numbers of highly skilled personnel who see the writing on the wall for their jobs. This could lead to an 'experience drain' that would take decades to reverse and would have serious security implications."