GMP Federation consider legal action against Government over police vaccine priority

Greater Manchester Police Federation is considering legal action against the Government amid allegations vaccines are going to waste at the Etihad mass vaccination centre.

The body is seeking legal advice over whether the Government are breaching their duty of care to their ‘employees’ under Health and Safety legislation by refusing to include police officers in the vaccination programme.

GMP Federation Health and Safety Lead Phil Thomasson says it's "no secret" that the Etihad is running at about 50% capacity.

"Despite the inconsistent programme for Police Officers to receive whatever residual vaccines there may be at the end of the day, there is still significant wastage. Not only is this inefficient and wasteful, it’s a disgrace to think that the Government are knowingly allowing vaccines to be disposed of.

“I have also had funding authorised for legal advice to explore whether the Government are breaching their duty of care to their ‘employees’ under Health & Safety legislation by refusing to include Police Officers in the vaccination programme.

“This joins a wider piece of work being undertaken by PFEW. Let’s see where this takes us but the harsh reality is that we will probably have had the vaccine before the Government meet their responsibilities to us.”

The statement reveals that 1,335 police officers and staff in GMP have tested positive for COVID-19, just over 1 in 10 people within the workforce. Mr Thomasson says "this is a clear representation of the nature of our job.”

'Police officers have no desire to jump the queue'

GMP Federation say they understand there are still a number of people who would become ill if they were to get infected, but state police officers can't respond to incidents from "the comfort of their own homes" and that the nature of the job means social-distancing is incompatible.

Phil Thomasson goes on to highlight future major events coming up the U.K. in the near future: "We also have to be mindful of events in the near future that are going to pose increased risks, especially the reopening of society including the night time economy, the reintroduction of crowds at major sporting events and the G7 summit in Cornwall in June."

“There are 130,000 Police Officers in England and Wales. The vaccination centres around the country are processing approximately 500,000 vaccinations per day, and they are generally open for about 12 hours.

“This means that in real terms, it would take just over 4 hours to vaccinate every single Police Officer in England and Wales."

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said:

“We are grateful for the tireless efforts of all our key workers at this difficult time – they are doing everything they can to ensure vital services carry on.

“The government is focused on saving lives and continue to follow the advice of the independent JCVI to vaccinate the most vulnerable first, based on age as the biggest factor determining mortality.”