Police officers shouldn’t go to work expecting to be attacked, says Staffordshire Police Federation chair Lee Robinson.
Lee said that Staffordshire Police officers are being assaulted almost every day.
He said: “I hear of at least one assault on one of my members almost every day, and often multiple attacks, and we are a relatively small force compared to most.
“Any assault on any emergency service worker is one too many.
“No one should go to work with the expectation or fear that they’ll be assaulted.
“Police officers are also mothers and fathers, husbands and wives. They have families at home who also worry what their loved will face at work.
“This can’t be right. Police officers do a difficult and demanding job and deserve to be protected, just as they protect our communities.”
Lee’s comments come as figures shared with the BBC showed that in the year to June there were 38,079 assaults on officers in England - a rise of six per cent in three years.
Now he’s calling on the Force and Government to take steps to ensure officers are protected, including all frontline officers to be equipped with Taser if they want it.
And he urged the courts to impose tougher sentences on attackers to send out a message that attacks on police officers won’t be tolerated.
“We need routine double crewing of officers and a wider roll out of Taser to all frontline officers that want to carry it and are able to pass the national taser course,” he said.
“But the main thing is that there is no deterrent from the courts.
“There needs to be an increase in sentences from courts for perpetrators of assaults against emergency workers to deter such offences.
“The Home office proposal of increasing the maximum sentence doesn’t go far enough, it’s the sentences routinely handed down to offenders that matter.”
