West Midlands Police 'to axe 300 longest-serving officers'
PLANS have been drawn up to axe 300 of the longest-serving officers from West Midlands Police,
The cull of the longest-serving officers was revealed to shocked senior detectives at a CID meeting last Thursday night.
The unprecedented cost-cutting proposals will be discussed by force management and West Midlands Police Authority on September 30.
But insiders described the plans as a ‘done deal’, claiming notification letters bearing individual names have already been typed up.
A well-placed source said: “It’s like having a hand grenade thrown into the police force and watching it blow up. We will be losing enormous officer experience and knowledge.
‘‘The public will really feel and see the effects of this.”
The plans involve axing 90 officers currently enrolled on the 30-year-plus scheme, which allows those who have retired to return to the force.
But a further 210 serving cops who will have reached 30 years pensionable service by January next year are also set to go – even though some could be as young as 48.
Senior officers are said to have listened in stony-faced silence as the plans were first revealed at a force CID conference last Thursday in Birmingham city centre.
Among the most senior officers facing the axe is Chief Superintendent Mick Treble, who was only recently appointed overall head of CID and is considered among the force’s most experienced and well-regarded officers.
Others earmarked for the chop because they have served more than 30 years include Chief Superintendent Steve Dugmore and Chief Superintendent Dick Green.
The force has not made the plans public nor made rank-and-file officers aware of the proposals.
But sources say the unprecedented cuts will be decided upon when force management and the police authority meet on September 30.
