The Ministry of Defence Police (Conduct) Regulations 2004

Regulation 2.

SCHEDULE 1 CODE OF CONDUCT

Honesty and integrity

1.  Members of the force should so conduct themselves as to uphold public faith in the honesty and integrity of the force, and accordingly they should—

(a) be open and truthful in their dealings,

(b) avoid being improperly beholden to any person or institution, and

(c) discharge their duties with integrity.

Fairness and impartiality

2.  Members of the force have a particular responsibility to act with fairness and impartiality in all their dealings with the public and their colleagues.

Politeness and tolerance

3.  Members of the force should treat members of the public and colleagues with courtesy and respect, avoiding abusive or derisory attitudes or behaviour. In particular, they must avoid—

(a) favouritism of an individual or group,

(b) all forms of harassment, victimisation or unreasonable discrimination, and

(c) overbearing conduct to a colleague, particularly to one junior in rank or service.

Use of force

4.  Members of the force must never knowingly use more force than is reasonable.

Abuse of authority

5.  Members of the force must not abuse their authority.

Performance of duties

6.—(1) Members of the force should be conscientious and diligent in the performance of their duties.

(2) Members of the force should attend work promptly when rostered for duty.

(3) If absent from duty through sickness or injury, members of the force should avoid activities likely to retard their return to duty.

Lawful orders

7.—(1) Unless there is good and sufficient cause to do otherwise, members of the force must obey all lawful orders.

(2) Members of the force should support their colleagues in the execution of their lawful duties.

(3) Members of the force should oppose any improper behaviour by their colleagues and report it where appropriate.

Confidentiality

8.—(1) Members of the force should treat information which comes into the possession of the police as confidential.

(2) Such information should not be used for personal benefit or divulged to other parties except in the proper course of police duty.

(3) Members of the force should respect as confidential information about policy and operations of the force unless authorised to disclose it in the course of their duties.

Criminal offences

9.—(1) Members of the force must report any proceedings for a criminal offence taken against them to the chief constable.

(2) Conviction of a criminal offence may of itself result in further action being taken.

Property

10.  Members of the force must exercise reasonable care to prevent loss of or damage to property (including police property).

Sobriety

11.—(1) Whilst on duty members of the force must be sober.

(2) Members of the force should not consume alcohol when on duty unless they are specifically authorised to do so or it becomes necessary for the proper discharge of police duty.

Appearance

12.  Unless on duties which dictate otherwise, members of the force should always be well turned out, clean and tidy whilst on duty in uniform or in plain clothes.

General conduct

13.  Whether on or off duty, members of the force should not behave in a way which is likely to bring discredit upon the police service.

Notes:—

(a) The primary duties of those who hold the office of constable in the force are the protection of life and property, the preservation of the Queen’s peace, and the prevention and detection of criminal offences. To fulfil these duties they are granted extraordinary powers; the public and the police service therefore have the right to expect the highest standards of conduct from them.

(b) This Code sets out the principles which guide the conduct of members of the force. It does not seek to restrict their discretion: rather it aims to define the parameters of conduct within which that discretion should be exercised. However, it is important to note that any breach of the principles in this Code may result in action being taken by the force, which, in serious cases, could involve dismissal.

(c) This Code applies to the conduct of members of the force in all ranks whilst on duty, or whilst off duty if the conduct is serious enough to indicate that a member is not fit to be a member of the force. It will be applied in a reasonable and objective manner. Due regard will be paid to the degree of negligence or deliberate fault and to the nature and circumstances of a member’s conduct. Where off duty conduct is in question, this will be measured against the generally accepted standards of the day.