‘Bullying almost drove me out of police union,’ says outgoing head of Police Federation

The outgoing head of the embattled Police Federation complained of being bullied and humiliated by senior colleagues as he tried to reform it, it has been revealed.

Steve Williams, who announced his resignation on Monday, said the abuse had left him on the verge of quitting the body that represents 127,000 officers. He took over the federation last year with an unpopular message of reform following setbacks over pay negotiations, police cutbacks and recriminations over its role in the “Plebgate” saga.

In the letter to its central committee, published by MPs today, Mr Williams said: “I know some of you have described what has happened as ‘venting the spleen’ exercises or ‘a little bit of bloodletting’ but it is simply wrong and is not how we should treat colleagues… At times I have genuinely felt that I have been gratuitously and cruelly bullied and humiliated…

“The behaviour from some, recently directed publicly and critically towards me, in my opinion is totally unacceptable and, for me personally, a straw that edged on breaking the camel’s back.”