Sajid Javid: Police resources a priority as capacity falls short of demand

Previously, the conference has been the scene of angry exchanges. Theresa May was heckled and booed in 2012 after telling officers they should “stop pretending” police were being picked on and Mr Javid’s predecessor, Amber Rudd, received a frosty response in 2017 over her views on police funding.

But he repeatedly told conference delegates that he “gets it”, suggesting having a brother as a senior police officer gave him a unique understanding of policing.

The Government has rebuffed claims that reductions in both Government funding and numbers of officers have contributed to the rise in violent crime, but three weeks after being appointed he adopted a more conciliatory tone. While he did not explicitly link cuts in police numbers to rising levels of offending, Mr Javid acknowledged that “capacity is no longer able to keep up with demand” and that addressing this would be a “fundamental challenge”.

Mr Javid pledged to prioritise police funding in the spending review next year, to “totally transform the welfare provision for officers” and to review police powers. “I get that there’s increased demand. I want you to have the resources you need. When you’re out in public trying to do your duty, you should be protected.

“That’s why I’m backing the Emergency Workers Bill which will include tougher penalties for those who attack police officers and other emergency service workers. That’s why I’m making sure you have the right kit and the right technology to do your jobs effectively.”

“Let’s reset the relationship between government and the police. I will give you the tools the powers and the back-up that you need to get the job done. For those of you who stand on the frontline, be in no doubt, I will be standing with you,” he said.

He told delegates: “You might be thinking ‘you’re not one of us’, as no Home Secretary has ever served as a police officer”. But, he said, he was the first home secretary with a police officer in his immediate family – his brother Bas is a chief superintendent.

“Over the years, I’ve heard what he has to say about policing,” he said. “I know the tricky situations he’s been in.” Mr Javid said his brother had been “hospitalised more times than I know from being assaulted on duty”, missed Christmas one year because his jaw had been dislocated, and he had witnessed him being called a “Paki bastard”, all of which illustrated how “hard and horrible” policing could be.

He announced a formal Frontline Review to “learn what you really think”.

Yet despite offering an olive branch to the police, the Home Secretary made it clear that he expects standards to be raised, stating that each police force in the country needed to be rated as “good” and calling for all victims to be treated with respect.

Referring to the use of stop and search, he told the conference: “Some of you don’t feel comfortable using it – and that’s not how it should be. I have confidence in your professional judgment. So let me be clear – I support the use of stop and search.”

Mr Javid also pledged to speak directly to Metropolitan Police Service Commissioner Cressida Dick to raise the issue of providing all frontline officers with spit hoods. So far around 31 out of 43 forces in England and Wales use spit hoods and several, including the British Transport Police which operates in London, have also issued the kit to front line officers.

The mesh fabric coverings are currently on trial at several custody suites in the capital but not used widely after being condemned as “cruel and degrading” by Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott.

Mr Javid said Ms Abbott was wrong to condemn their use and he promised to examine what powers he has to mandate their use.

“I do not understand why any chief constable should put public perception before protecting police officers. I think that is completely ridiculous,” he said.