Fall in Jersey honorary police 'needs addressing'

The decline in the number of honorary police in Jersey is a "major issue" for the force, its president has said.

The number of volunteer officers has fallen from about 240 to 215 over the past few years.

Steve Pallet, of the Honorary Police Association, said they found it hard to regularly patrol the areas prone to anti-social behaviour problems.

He said recruiting more officers was a key issue the force would address in the new year.

But 2010 has been a positive year for the association, Mr Pallett added.

Nothing but praise

"I think a lot of people don't see the majority of work we do. They see the face of us on the street patrolling at road checks or community events.

"But they don't see a lot of the work that goes on in the background, the many hundreds of thousands of hours of work.

"I've got nothing but praise for the amount of time our officers put in."

Jersey's home affairs minister said the honorary police continued to be a key part of island life, and played an important role in the criminal justice system.