26 October 2001

METROPOLITAN POLICE AUTHORITY MEMBERS ENDORSE REQUEST FOR GOLDEN JUBILEE MEDAL FOR POLICE

Members of the Metropolitan Police Authority have called for police officers to receive the Golden Jubilee Medal in recognition of the nature of their valuable work and their devotion to service, which sometimes requires them to perform beyond the call of duty.

Toby Harris, Chair of the MPA, said

"The police have previously received commemorative medals from the Sovereign, for instance the Silver Jubilee Medal back in 1977, and the MPA feels that it would be inappropriate not to commend their dedication to duty.

"Police officers do a particularly difficult job and can face many unknown dangers in their day-to-day work.

"I want to put on record our gratitude to the Met for the courage and dedication their officers display, not just in the current situation but all year round, in making sure that London stays as safe as possible."

Toby Harris has indicated that he will be writing to the Home Secretary about the matter.

The Full Authority endorsed the proposal, agreeing that the nature and scale of work undertaken by the police deserves recognition and that the government should reconsider its position.

NOTES TO EDITORS

The Authority''s Members are:

Anthony Arbour Jennette Arnold Reshard Auladin Richard Barnes John Biggs Cindy Butts Lynne Featherstone Nicky Gavron Lord Toby Harris Peter Herbert Elizabeth Howlett Darren Johnson Jenny Jones Nicholas Long Cecile Lothian R David Muir Eric Ollerenshaw Sir John Quinton Angela Slaven Richard Sumray Lord Graham Tope Abdal Ullah Rachel Whittaker