Getting quite tense isn't it
Anyway, I would like to see the traffic officers who think this is a good idea, as stated by the spokeswoman. Ok they may get 50 points (wow) for a fatal, but that could be them written off for ages.
When I was on CID we had a local criminal travelling at 90mph hit a schoolgirl 70 ft through the air, and drive off without stopping. This poor girl is still recovering from horrific injuries, and will never be as she was before. During the investigation the traffic department supplied us with one of their best officers to assist us. This officers expertise was invaluable, and the end result put this maniac away for 4 years (yes more would be nice).
For the 2 months he was attached to CID, he would have only had 50 points, if that, because he was not in reality the lead officer. Was his contribution more important than stop checking other criminals...I think not.
Personally I do not agree with this policy. Our division has just brought in arrest league tables, and quite frankly they are stupid. You have some officers with barely a tomato season in the job swaggering around saying they are top in their area. After a bit of digging you find half of those are Mickey Mouse offences, or easy public order.
Is this value for money, is this what you want (where's my soap box). It certainly doesn’t reflect the good work being done by officers who are investigating more serious and time consuming offences, or community officers whose work is also highly valued by the communities they serve.
This is another example of the corporate approach being taken by police forces countrywide.
Rant over.