Police Federation calls for South Yorkshire cops to have legal protection to say 'no'

Chairman Steve Kent spoke out as he discussed the demand officers face and how they fear repercussions if they fail to respond to calls for help even when incidents are not police-related.

Mr Kent pointed out that officers often get called to incidents when other agencies, such as the NHS, are unable to respond.

He spoke out to coincide with the release of The Strategic Review of Policing in England and Wales, Led by Sir Michael Barber, which examined the ability of the police to respond to crime.

Sir Michael warned that officers are being ‘distracted by social problems’, as he highlighted the large amount of time officers spend investigating missing person reports.

MORE: South Yorkshire's crime hotspots revealed

Mr Kent said: “Should we be the primary resource dealing with mental health? Absolutely not. Should we be the primary resource backing up the NHS because they are completely cut to the bone and don’t have the resources? No, we shouldn’t.

“But we are in an impossible position. They can come out with this all they like. Are they are going to deal with all the other public services and give them the resources they need or make it clear legislatively that we have no duty of care?

“It’s all very well them coming out and making these comments, but they need to back it up with legal protections.

“Kit Malthouse, with the greatest of respect, won’t be standing in front of the Independent Office for Police Conduct saying, ‘Well it’s okay, I’ve told our officers not to go to this job’, when somebody has taken their own life because the police haven’t turned up when they’ve been requested to by the NHS.”

Officers risk being disciplined if they did not turn up to medical incidents when things have gone wrong, Mr Kent said.

He added: “If they want us to deal with crime and they want us to deal with keeping law and order and not being essentially the reserve for the NHS, reserve social services, and the reserve fire brigade, they’ve actually got to give us the legal protection to say ‘no’.

“Until that’s the case, this is completely hot air and it’s pointless.”

CRIME: CCTV pictures released as Sheffield police investigate violent robbery on Derek Dooley Way