Kent Police chief Alan Pughsley criticises the Met's 'poaching' of officers

Chief constable Alan Pughsley said he did not believe the financial incentive "helped anybody"

Kent's police chief says he is "disappointed" with the Met Police for offering a £5,000 joining incentive to officers from other forces.

Ch Con Alan Pughsley said he understood the force's challenges, but he did not agree with its recruitment methods.

Kent and Sussex's Police and Crime Commissioners (PCC's) accused the London force of "poaching" officers from other forces earlier this month.

The Met is trying to recruit 4,000 officers by March 2023.

Speaking to BBC Radio Kent, Mr Pughsley said: "I've got the same problems and the same challenge so I was very disappointed in it.

"It's a financial incentive that I do not believe helps anybody if I'm brutally honest."

In response, the Met said: "During the police uplift programme period, which is now in its third year, more Met officers have transferred to other police forces than have transferred into the Met."

Kent and Sussex's Police and Crime Commissioners Matthew Scott and Katy Bourne said that the Met's failures to recruit were impacting on nearby forces

In a previously-released statement, the Met said it was offering a "one-off financial incentive of £5,000" to "retain experienced officers and attract even more uniformed police constables to work in the capital".

Mr Pughsley criticised current pay schemes for officers, and added: "My officers should be paid more, that's the reality of it and then we wouldn't have this problem.

"I understand the national financial situation but we have not been, in my view pay-wise, rewarded significantly well enough for about the last 10 years."

Chair of the Kent Police Federation, Neil Mennie, agreed and added: "I suspect we will get a very, very small pay rise, if at all, this year and it's just not good enough. The only way we're going to stop that kind of migration is to pay officers more."

Eight PCCs have already written to London Mayor Sadiq Khan to raise "grave concerns" about the Met's recruitment practices on neighbouring forces.

The Home Office has been contacted for a comment.

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