Police overtime bill tops £1 billion

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Figures released under the Freedom of Information Act reveal 35 forces spent an average of £375 million each year.

If applied to all 43 forces in England and Wales, the total would top £1.27 billion.

However, the figure excludes the Metropolitan Police, which spent £422 million on overtime.

The Police Federation has blamed the rise on increasing amounts of paperwork and a shortage of officers.

Spokesman PC Nigel Cox: "Our stance has always been that officers shouldn't be required to work overtime and that the appropriate level of resources should be in place to cover all aspects of policing.

"The Federation has been saying for a long time that bureaucracy is keeping officers in offices rather than being out on the streets.

"If bureaucracy was cut and we stopped chasing Government targets there would be a substantial saving in overtime."

Only police constables and sergeants are eligible for overtime, which has to be approved by senior officers. They can also be ordered to work additional hours if needed.

Casual overtime is paid at time and a third, while officers get double-time for working Bank Holidays.

In Devon and Cornwall, £18 million in overtime has been paid out since 2003.

Out of the force's overall £246 million budget, last year £6.3 million was spent on overtime.

The money could have boosted the force's 3,500 officers by 242 PCs on an average wage of £26,000.

PC Cox, who is also secretary of the Federation's Devon and Cornwall branch, said: "Devon and Cornwall has more officers now than it has ever had but the question is, where are they?

"If we are having to work £6 million worth of overtime a year, then are these people in the right places?"

But Bob Pennington, Assistant Chief Constable of Devon and Cornwall, said overtime payments have fallen in real terms.

He added: "The vast majority of overtime is incurred through having to deal with unanticipated incidents.

"Payment for overtime is taken seriously within the force and management processes are in place to ensure there is never any unnecessary spend."