The actual report from the Think Tank is 129 pages long. I skim read it last night, the 'wearing uniform on route to work' idea is only one of the suggestions within it.
The report is clearly aimed at giving 'value for money' and increasing visibility of Policing. It also in my opinion seems to be aimed more towards the big Metropolitan Forces such as the Met, West Midlands and Greater Manchester.
Dolph hit on one point of the report, the 13000-14000 Warranted Police Officers who hadn't made an arrest last year. I don't recall the report breaking down these numbers, i.e. how many of those Officers were Sergeants, Inspectors, Chief Inspectors (all the way up to Chief Constable level), since they're just as much a Warranted Officer as a Police Constable.
There are other roles as someone else has mentioned that don't make arrests as such, Surveillance Officers, Field Intelligence Officers etc. The role of their job is to remain covert - they gather the Intelligence and someone else makes that arrest.
Now I'm not making excuses for the seemingly large number of Officers not arresting, but as with anything you have to examine the background.
Then you have the arguement, do you pay a Police Officer working in an Office alongside a Civilian member of staff the same wage, since they're doing the same job. Yes well they may be doing the same task, but the job they do is different.
One will have the right to strike etc and cannot be ordered to stay on duty, one will not have restrictions on their private life such as where they can live or not getting into debt, one will not be expected on or off duty to get involved in dealing with any Criminal incident in front of them (these are just a small proportion of the differences). Can you guess which one is a Police Officer and which is the Civilian Staff member yet?
Now as for wearing Uniform whilst on route to work. Firstly there is no way on Gods earth the Government are going to even consider paying Police Officers in Uniform whilst they are on route to and from work. They haven't got the money - this whole report is not about paying more, but getting value for money and in many cases reducing the cost. One big part of the report mentions how a British Police Officer costs more than their opposite numbers in the US or Australia (quite how they work that one out I don't know).
Other posters have already mentioned the fact that Officers on route to work will not have Radios, CAPTOR / CS Spray, Casco Batons, Handcuffs or Body Armour - Von Smallhausen hit the nail on the head, the incapacitant sprays are considered prohibited weapons - they have to be securely stored.
The same goes for the Police radions, which are pretty sophisticated pieces of kit nowadays. I'm certainly not going to go into the whys on a public forum, but they also have to be accounted for and stored in secure lockers. I know in my own Force people have suggested having these items at home, but it was instantly shot down by Senior Officers.
Most Officers I work with don't need Uniform to get involved - they do and often get injured as a result.
One poster mentioned that forcing Officers to go to work in uniform would weed out the 'cowards' - well let me tell you this sunshine - those Officers have had to go through the same training, the same 2 years probation and work the same shifts as anyone else, they may well be in what you consider cushy jobs now, but as with the recent riots many of them that you consider to be 'cowards' faced people that you may have run a mile from, so don't pull that one.
Some other posters have mentioned the risks of people knowing where Officers live. Now most people are decent law abiding people and would like Police Officers to live by them and would respect them, but there are a lot of people out there who will take a pop at Police Officers and their families. In the years I have been an Officer I've known the following happen to Police Officers that I have worked with:-
1) A female Officer having to have a restraining order placed against a person who persistently followed her home, parked near her house etc.
2) An Officer who had paint thrown over the front door and windows of her house
3) An Officer who had the word "scum" burnt into the bonnet of their car with paint stripper
4) Lost count of the Officers who have had damage caused to their cars whilst parked near to Police Stations
5) An Officer who had every window of his house smashed
6) One Officer who had a Burglary, during the course of which they discovered his Police Uniform and then systematically trashed his house, poured paint all over the walls and carpets, his family photographs and again daubed anti-Police messages in paint.
7) One Officer who was asleep in bed at his house in another Force area only to be woken by the smell of smoke - the whole of the front of his house had been set alight by a person with a grudge.
All of these have taken place on Officers from ONE Police station in a Rural Force. Imagine what would happen in the Met or West Midlands?
It isn't just a case of fearing for our own safety, I can look after myself, but what happens to our wives, husbands, children etc who are at home when we are at work if we are targetted? Thats what we fear.
Whilst the idea is an attractive one for 'Blue sky' think tanks (btw where do they get their money from?) the risks would outweigh the benefits.
