COVID vaccines must be rolled out across police forces to ensure public safety, North-East police officials and academics have said.

Northumbria’s Police Commissioner Kim McGuinness, Chief Constable Winton Keenen and Northumbria Police Federation’s Jim Gray are supporting calls for officers and essential police staff to be prioritised, as appropriate, for the vaccine alongside health-workers in order to keep vital public services safe.

Leading academics from the University of Sunderland have added their voices to calls including Dr Jeremy Pearson, senior lecturer in policing and former Northumbria office.

Earlier this week the Police Federation called for those serving in our police forces to be soon given access to Covid-19 vaccines, after the most vulnerable members of society and frontline NHS staff.

Ms McGuinness raised the need to vaccinate officers as an urgent matter during a conference call with Policing Minister, Kit Malthouse.

She said: “We are in a serious situation and the clock is ticking - the Government needs to apply common sense and get our police vaccinated, and fast.

“No-one can deny the fact that our police officers are out there in the thick of it day in, day out – they’re coming into close contact with a lot of people, in a lot of places. There are, I appreciate, many people who are key workers and deserve to be high on that list too, of course, but for our police the risks are notably huge.

“They’re entering countless homes, being fought with, spat at, coughed at – social distancing isn’t even a choice. The only solution is an urgent vaccination programme and this needs to happen to keep our workforce numbers strong at what is a crucial time for everyone.”

She added: “Yes, we need to protect officers just like they protect us but this is about the much bigger picture too. An officer who gets Covid is either unknowingly spreading it, or, will be isolating and out of action from serving our communities.

“None of this is good and neither should be allowed to happen, not when there is a simple solution – get them vaccinated now. This is ultimately about everyone’s safety and we’ll have to keep shouting until we are heard on this.”

Chief Constable Winton Keenen said: “Throughout this pandemic, officers, staff and volunteers have continued to display unwavering commitment to serving the communities we are privileged to be a part of here in the North East.

“I am immensely proud of the way they have overcome the challenges brought about by Covid-19 while also meeting the demands of regular policing.

“In doing so it is important to recognise that, by the very nature of the duties they are carrying out, it is inevitable they will be regularly engaging with members of the public.

“It is right that we should look at how we can best protect both them and those they come into contact with – and also maintain vital policing numbers so we are able to provide the very best service possible.

Dr Pearson said : “These officers provide protection and reassurance to members of the public and are frequently the first emergency service to respond to calls for assistance from the vulnerable as they seek help.

“Vaccinating frontline police officers will not only ensure that a greater number of officers are able to carry on this important work by remaining fit for duty, but will also minimise the risk of those officers unwittingly passing the Covid virus on to others during the course of their work.”

Professor Lynne McKenna, Dean of the Faculty of Education and Society at the University, said: ““The University supplies a substantial supply of graduates to all areas of the public sector workforce. Our Strategic Plan includes the ambitions to be Profession Facing, Society Shaping and Student Focused and we are rightly proud of our track record in developing professional programmes.

“We understand the complexities of rolling out the vaccine, but we would very much welcome decisions on prioritising professional groups to enable the public sector to operate safely.

“We also await with great interest, the outcome of the debate around vaccinating the teacher and school workforce which is schedule to take place in the House of Commons on Monday.”