THE NSW police disability scheme faces cutbacks after its cost increased by $85 million in two years.
The Government's liability for the Death and Disability Scheme, created in 2005, has leapt from $29.2 million in the 2006 financial year to $115 million in the 12 months to June, said a report released yesterday.
The scheme was introduced to compensate police and families if they were killed or injured on the job. Officers could be eligible for payments of up to $500,000, and the plan was to cost $30 million a year.
"We recommend that the force continues to monitor [the scheme's] liquidity closely," the report, released by the NSW Auditor-General, said.
The numbers come amid speculation about a plan by the police corporate services area to significantly restrict the scheme and backdate the changes so those who are currently eligible for benefits are affected.
There are 74 police officers applying for discharge. In a statement released yesterday, Strath Gordon, a spokesman for the Commissioner, Andrew Scipione, would not guarantee they would be safe from any changes.
"There are currently stresses on the scheme and these are being looked at … implications for those [74] applications would be aligned to award negotiations," he said.
The Police Minister, Tony Kelly, moved to allay concerns yesterday afternoon. "The NSW Government remains committed to providing all police officers with appropriate death and disability arrangements," he said.
The NSW Police Association lobbied for the scheme. Its secretary, Peter Remfrey, warned yesterday against any changes. "The minister's commitment … shows [he] understands that frontline police will not be prepared to continue to put their lives on the line if they are not afforded full protection from death and disability," he said.
Managing Injured Officers , a comprehensive report by the Auditor-General, Peter Achterstraat, on police retirement due to injury is due to be released next month. It is believed it will also make a number of recommendations to reform the Death and Disability Scheme, which covers the 12,000 police officers hired after 1988.
Police have seen a draft copy of the report but would not comment on what recommendations it may make. "The Auditor-General is conducting a review of [the force's] injury management processes and may well make recommendations in relation to death and disability," Mr Gordon said.
A former police officer turned academic, Dr Michael Kennedy, said the liability was the result of decades of mismanagement. of officers. "Police have had problems with retention rates for some time now because the Government tries to make the police department run like a business … now we've got a whole lot of people looking for pensions."
The pressure on middle managers such as local area crime managers and commanders to "increase productivity" had left many embittered, he said.
"Middle management are continually being told to increase productivity like it's some kind of bottling plant. What do you do to increase productivity? You increase … arrest rates. Police aren't supposed to be going out arresting people because it's a numbers game."
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