When times get tough in this country, that’s when British courage and fortitude are at their best.
We pull together. It’s our national characteristic, one we are rightly proud of.
And there’s one group of older people above all who can be relied on for their ingrained sense of public service, their knowledge and experience, their trustworthiness.
The public doesn’t often think of them, perhaps. But at this moment we need them as we never have before.
I know a good many ex- coppers in their 80s and even 90s who share my readiness to offer whatever help we can in this extraordinary national crisis. (Stock image)
They are the nation’s retired police officers, and I believe they have a crucial role to play in containing the coronavirus crisis over the coming months.
According to the National Association of Retired Police Officers (NARPO), there are up to 100,000 former constables and ex-detectives.
Some of them are my age or older — I’m 77 and, though I retired as Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police in 2005, I feel I’ve got a fair bit of public service left in me yet.
I know a good many ex- coppers in their 80s and even 90s who share my readiness to offer whatever help we can in this extraordinary national crisis. But the majority of retired officers are considerably younger than me.
Many are in their 50s, as fit and sharp as ever. These men and women possess unique skills and decades of experience that is impossible to replicate.
We cannot afford to waste such a golden resource.
Chaos
I propose that we enable all retired officers to volunteer to serve the police force again, in some official capacity. I’m not suggesting they all get their old jobs back, but I do believe it’s essential their talents and energies are harnessed.
This is an idea that is already in the ether. Cressida Dick, the current Met chief, said earlier this week: ‘We have lots of people who volunteer with the Met — we can bring them in more, and indeed there may be some areas where it would make sense to bring in retired officers to help us out.’
This needs to be done in an organised fashion, through a national structure.
Cressida Dick, the current Met chief, said earlier this week: ‘We have lots of people who volunteer with the Met — we can bring them in more, and indeed there may be some areas where it would make sense to bring in retired officers to help us out’
It would be chaos to ask people to get together in a haphazard way without central oversight. We can’t do policing via WhatsApp. Every ex-officer I’ve approached is eager to be involved, providing it’s done properly. They could be signed up as special constables, for instance, or some other designation might be found.
It’s essential they are locked into local community teams, so that there is administrative back-up and a command structure to ensure people know what they are doing and where they will be most needed.
I am not talking about crime prevention, though the presence of former officers will certainly act as a deterrent to wrongdoing. My idea is more analogous to bringing experienced doctors out of retirement: when all that expertise is available, it is madness to ignore it.
Their skills can be channelled into specific areas of police work, freeing up the current force — already stretched to its limits — to investigate crime and ensure this crisis doesn’t spiral into lawlessness.
Retired officers have experience and training that the general public simply doesn’t.
They are accustomed to the most unpleasant jobs, such as attending the aftermath of road accidents, or defusing violence in city centres. They can keep calm in the most volatile situations, when their self-control can mean the difference between restoring order or seeing all hell break loose.
They are also trained for one of the most difficult jobs: breaking bad news to bereaved families. It’s not something that ever gets easier, but it is a role that requires a steady nerve and a sympathetic manner.
Sadly, if government predictions are indeed right, many families will lose loved ones to the Covid-19 virus over the coming months.
We cannot leave it to vicars and hospital volunteers to bring the news, and we daren’t risk a situation where gossip on social media takes over.
Former police are best placed to do this difficult job. We must lean on them.
I’m not suggesting for a moment that they should be paid. I know the money isn’t available in the police budgets. In fact, I don’t imagine that’s what my old colleagues would want, though naturally they ought to get their travel expenses paid and equipment provided — no one should be out of pocket.
What they do want and deserve is official recognition. If they are to lend their invaluable knowledge and skills, the police force must welcome them back inside with open arms.
I believe the public would applaud this scheme warmly. The majority of civilians trust their bobbies implicitly.
Think about it: who else would you hand your purse and prescription to, without a qualm, when you wanted your medicine picked up from the chemist?
If you’re self-isolating, and you’re not lucky enough to have friends or family nearby who can carry out this vital errand, a friendly ex-copper would be a godsend.
People are talking about ‘war-zone’ Britain but I believe that’s because we lack the vocabulary to describe what’s happening. (Stock image)
And if you’re lonely or feeling frightened, a knock on the door from a former constable would be truly reassuring. This crisis has caught Europe by surprise.
The situation is moving with extraordinary speed, and to deal with it we need highly experienced people who are used to coping with fluid and rapidly changing situations.
A few days ago I was in Switzerland on a skiing break. At breakfast the mood was tense but not too ominous — yet within four hours the pistes were closed and I was on a train, heading for the airport and hoping my flight wouldn’t be cancelled.
As I boarded the plane, I saw people in Arrivals who had no idea that the pistes were shut. Within 24 hours, my hotel was closed to tourists.
Earlier this week I walked through Victoria Station in London and the place was deserted, like the set of a disaster movie. In a working life stretching back half a century, both those situations are new to me. It’s unprecedented.
Valued
People are talking about ‘war-zone’ Britain but I believe that’s because we lack the vocabulary to describe what’s happening. Our country is not a war zone, and we must not allow it to deteriorate into one.
I have been horrified to see photographs from France and Spain of soldiers on the streets, ordering people off beaches at gunpoint or patrolling seaside strips in armoured cars.
We must not see an authoritarian crackdown here. I believe the Government is entirely right to trust people to do what is best for them and take their own precautions, rather than imposing draconian laws and a lockdown.
That has never been the way Britain faces a crisis. We don’t want an authoritarian approach here. The last thing we need is to have soldiers on the streets. That would imply society is losing control.
The vast majority of people understand what a difficult position this is. They know the police are there to help them and so they will gladly help the police.
If any good comes out of this horrendous situation, it will be that people relearn the habit of working together in communities. No section of society is better placed to do that than our trusted, valued ex-police men and women.
Britain relied on these people once and it can do so again.
Lord Stevens was Metropolitan Police Commissioner from 2000 to 2005.