Union urges PCC to work with other forces (From St Albans & Harpenden Review)

Hertfordshire Police Staff UNISON Branch urge PCC to work with other forces in Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire

2:31pm Wednesday 30th January 2013 in News By Mike Wright, Chief Reporter

A Hertfordshire police union has urged the county’s police commissioner to abandon privatisation plans and look for savings by collaborating with other forces, in the wake of the G4S deal collapse.

Hertfordshire Police Staff UNISON Branch said large cost savings could be made by merging back office services with forces in Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire.

The call comes after Hertfordshire’s police commissioner David Lloyd said proposals to outsource functions such as finance, procurement, HR and corporate communications to security company G4S had fallen through.

Steph Raddings, chairman of the Hertfordshire branch, said: "Over the past 6 years we have consistently shown our willingness to work with the constabulary to deliver significant savings through collaboration with Bedfordshire Police and latterly Cambridgeshire Constabulary.

"We will urge the constabulary and police and crime commissioner to extend this collaboration to the areas considered for outsourcing and begin saving taxpayers’ money at the earliest opportunity.

"We are reassured that the work undertaken in exploring the Lincolnshire G4S contract has not been worthless and will form the basis for future collaborative work. "We will continue to work closely with the Constabulary and look forward to a similar relationship with the police and crime commissioner."