UK Edition
Non-English speaking victims of crime to be given priority, police chief suggests
Victims of crime who do not speak English could be given priority by the Metropolitan Police, a senior officer has suggested.
Deputy Commissioner Craig Mackey said that callers might be denied a personal visit from police unless they are deemed to be sufficiently "vulnerable".
He said it is "absolutely feasible" that "face-to-face" visits by officers could be reserved for the "vulnerable" - giving examples as those for whom English is not a first language, the elderly and people with learning difficulties.
Mr Mackey said that crimes such as vehicle thefts are the types of offences that officers might not be sent to in person unless the victim was assessed to require one under a new triage system.
He suggested the idea could help the Met to cope with a reduction in funding. In the last four years, the force has had to make £600m of savings and it is due to lose an extra £400m by 2020.
Speaking to the Evening Standard, Mr Mackey described how the force will have to change its approach to cope with less money.
He said: “That’s where you get into some of the difficult areas around do you always offer the same service to everyone?
"Increasingly, as we go forward we will look at things like trying to assess people and crime on the sort of the threat, the harm, the risk, and people’s vulnerability.
“It’s absolutely feasible as we go forward that if my neighbour is a vulnerable elderly person who has experienced a particular type of crime, that she gets a face-to-face service that I don’t get. So we triage things... we assess people’s vulnerability.
“Vulnerability can manifest itself in a number of ways: people with learning difficulties, a whole range of things, some people for whom English isn’t a first language.
"That’s about how we get those resources focused on the things you can make a difference with. But also as we go forward, as demand grows, you have to have a way of controlling and triaging.”
Met Commissioner Cressida Dick has previously said she was talking to the government about reconsidering the force's funding.
The Home Office has said it is "undertaking a period of detailed engagement with policing partners and relevant experts".
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