As Chairman of the British Transport Police Federation and a member of the
International Law Enforcement Council I was invited along with the main UK
Federations to attend and give a presentation to the Fraternal Order of Police
Conference in Phoenix Arizona.
The F.O.P. cover every state in America and have a branch in Eire, they have over 300,000 members making them the largest Staff Association in the world.
Their Conference covered topics such as the wearing or non-wearing of protective equipment, diversity, conflict management and racial profiling, sounds familiar!
The F.O.P. have a very strong political voice and are invited and participate in extremely high profile Government committees. They have regular meetings with the President and certainly make their voices heard.
I gave a brief outline of the British Transport Police's role and our problems regarding jurisdiction and accountability to the public.
The audience was some 3000+ and I will not be needing a laxative for a very long time.
Footnote: The F.O.P. have their own merchandise department with revenue exceeding $1,400,000 per annum.
Alex Robertson
Chairman
