Page 26 - WMPF Federation Oct-Nov 2018-flip

Colour blindness

tests could hit

firearms officers

irearms officers will now have to pass legitimate aim. Essex, Humberside, Leicestershire,
two tests which detect for colour “Previously, officers were required to pass Nottinghamshire, Lancashire, City of London,
Fblindness instead of one – meaning on one of two CVD tests; they now need to the Ministry of Defence and the Metropolitan
officers could be told they can no longer do pass on both. Retrospective testing is also police.
the role. taking place for those who previously And it’s reported that at least one police
The Police Federation of England and undertook these tests and identified with officer is already taking legal action over the
Wales has said the new rules, which have mild CVD.” new tests for CVD or colour blindness.
been introduced by College of Policing, could In 2016, the Government announced it A spokesperson from the College of
be discriminatory and seriously reduce the was boosting the number of armed officers Policing said: “The key points which the
number of armed police officers in the by 1,500 in response to the increased terrorist standards establish are the ability to identify
country. threat. However, this uplift has not been met a subject based on a description, of which
It says the regulations could be with the latest figures showing the total is colour could be a significant factor,
discriminatory on grounds of disability and some 700 officers short of that. particularly where this may lead to pre-
gender, because most of the 6,459 armed Ché continued: “This single-handedly emptive use of force or officers using lethal
officers in England and Wales are male, and could destroy the uplift. Hundreds will be force or firearms, and the ability to operate
men are much more likely than women to affected. This is because CVD is mainly firearms with a red dot sight system.
suffer from Colour Vision Deficiency (CVD). prevalent in the male population and firearms “However, the testing which officers have
Federation vice-chair Ché Donald said: units are still predominantly composed of to undergo if they fail screening, was updated
“The test is intended to screen out CVD male officers and CVD affects one in 12 men last year. The changes do not exclude all
sufferers, yet we know from extensive and one in 200 women. Firearms officers are officers with colour vision deficiency but only
research studies that the tests used are absolutely distraught.” those below a certain threshold. The
unreliable and do not achieve the objectives Currently, the rules have caused issues in standards were reviewed based on the role,
set out by the college and are not a a number of police forces including Devon equipment and expert technical and medical
proportionate means to achieving a and Cornwall, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, advice on colour vision deficiencies.”

26 federation October/November 2018 www.polfed.org/westmids