Interior minister: wave of departures from police force offset by new employees

A wave of departure of professionals from the police force has begun to be offset by the arrival of new employees. Interior Minister Ivan Langer said on Thursday more people joined the force than left it in the months of July and August. At a press conference assessing the activities of police upper management on Thursday, the minister said the trend had changed. Mr Langer also stressed that the wages of 94 percent of police personnel had grown in the first half of 2007 compared to the same period last year.

Mr Langer's deputy stated that was partly the result of the new law on service. The new service law - valid since January - originally triggered the wave of departures from the police force due to the changes in service rules for police officers, prison guards, customs officers as well as members of the fire brigade. The legislation applies to about 72,000 people, including 47,000 members of the police force.