Research suggesting that nearly one in five police officers plan to quit within the next two years amid low morale and dissatisfaction over pay should ring alarm bells.

While Home Secretary Suella Braverman has been preoccupied by migrant boat crossings in the English Channel, there is a potential problem brewing on the horizon.

An annual survey by the Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW) also found that 19 per cent of officers polled never or almost never have enough money to pay for essentials.

This points to a parallel with the crisis that the NHS is facing. The Home Office must learn lessons from the mishandling of the crisis in the NHS.

Research suggests that nearly one in five police officers plan to quit within the next two years amid low morale and dissatisfaction over pay.

Workforce planning has been a major issue in our health service and we can’t let the same happen in policing.

There is already a problem with a lack of visible policing, which only serves to embolden criminals. Police forces have been asked to recruit 20,000 officers over a three-and-a-half-year period up to March 2023, to replace those axed during austerity.

But recruiting and training officers takes time and money. Therefore improving retention is key.

As Dr Alan Billings, Police and Crime Commissioner for South Yorkshire, has warned hard decisions are going to have to be made when it comes to policing budgets.

While police officers aren’t able to strike, this research shows that some are contemplating withdrawing their labour permanently and that should be a concern to everyone, as our democracy is underpinned by the rule of law.

Low morale in police forces should be a cause for concern - The Yorkshire Post says