Police to vote on right to strike

Every police officer in the UK is to be balloted over whether they want to lobby for the right to strike, reports the BBC.

Officers are furious at Home Secretary Jacqui Smith's decision not to backdate a 2.5% pay rise for police in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

At a meeting, Police Federation members also passed a vote of no confidence in Ms Smith and demanded she resign.

Chairwoman Jan Berry said: "I don't remember such a call by the Police Federation being made previously but I also don't remember a home secretary who has betrayed the police service in the way that this home secretary has."

The 2.5% pay deal was decided through the independent Police Arbitration Tribunal.

But officers say if it is introduced this month and not backdated to September, an entry level police constable will lose £131, and a sergeant will lose £206.

Critics say that without backdating, it amounts in real terms - due to inflation - to an increase of only 1.9%.

The retail prices index, on which many pay deals are based, puts the current level of inflation at 4.2%.

Some 78 MPs have signed a motion tabled by the home affairs select committee chair, Keith Vaz, urging a rethink on the issue.

The BBC's Julian Joyce said the decision to call on the home secretary to resign appeared to be popular among the rank and file.

Neil Cratchley, general secretary of the Police Federation's largest branch - the Metropolitan Police, said: "This is a process that has gone on for seven months and it's now crystal clear that she never had any intention of honouring the agreement.

"We are dealing here with matters of trust and the home secretary has breached that trust."

Jacqui Smith said the move would save £30 million, equivalent to 800 police officers, and was justified by a general policy towards controlling public sector pay.

This is another example of our government's misplaced priorities, lavishing £2.5 billion a year extra on the fraud-ridden EU while hitting the pay of hard-pressed police officers in a bid to save £30 million.

That's not even two days worth of the extra money they're gifting the EU, whose auditors haven't been able to explain how it spends the "majority" of the public money it is given for thirteen years running.

Every single MP who voted to approve the European Communities (Finance) Bill is responsible for public money shortfalls like this for essential services. See the updated list of those MPs here.

What's the betting plenty of those 78 MPs who have signed the EDM urging the government to 'think again' on police pay also voted to waste billions extra on the EU?