Official figures reveal that officers from the Metropolitan Police are earning up to £61,000 a year extra in overtime.
A freedom of information request by the Liberal Democrats revealed that over the last three years, Scotland Yard has paid staff £270 million in overtime. It has also been revealed that Met officers worked an extra 3.7 million hours in 2016- 2017, which is the same as 120 hours per police officer.
The statistics reveal that £89 million was paid in 2017, compared to £101 million in 2016. It is said that the sum for last year was enough to pay the salaries of over 4,000 constables with the starting pay rate of £22,146. The highest overtime payment received was £61,712, followed by two officers who received more than £56,000 in overtime.
The Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman, Sir Ed Davey said, “The police work tirelessly to keep us safe, but this level of overtime isn't healthy or sustainable. The government needs to urgently invest in boosting police numbers or they will leave us all at risk.”
The director of people and change at the Met, Robin Wilkinson explained post the Grenfell Tower fire and terrorist incidents in 2017, there has been high demands for police services. He add, “Overtime generally reflects a cost-effective way of meeting such demands.”
