Police granted right to take Government to court over pay

<p>Police officers have been granted permission to launch a high-court challenge against the Governments refusal to backdate pay. </p><p>The judge ruled with no hesitation that police officers should have the right to challenge last years decision by the Government not to backdate a pay rise to September. </p><p>The Police Federations legal team are working to an April date, when they will face the Home Offices defence team. </p><p>In December home secretary Jacqui Smith announced that police officers would be awarded a 2.5% pay increase that would come into effect in December. The Police Federation say this amounts to a 1.9% pay rise, as it should have been backdated to September. In doing so, it says the Government has contravened European Union legislation. </p><p> The fact that our application for a judicial review has been successful adds weight to what we have been saying all along that the home secretary betrayed police officers by failing to honour the decision of the independent Police Arbitration Tribunal, says Jan Berry, chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales. </p>