Thousands of police officers up and down the country have taken leave due to stress, anxiety or depression over the course of the past year.
Bosses have blamed the trend on harsh cuts to the budget, the Mirror reports, with warnings given that many officers could burn out because of the strain of their workloads.
The statistics were obtained in a Freedom of Information request by the Press Association – and morale is also said to have been affected as the result of claims relating to the behaviour of undercover officers.
Chairman of the Police Federation Steve Williams acknowledged that the data is very worrying – and underlined his belief that this has come about as a direct result of budget cuts.
“While the service is not at breaking point officers are really feeling the pinch and the figures reveal the seriousness of what is happening on the ground. We need to take stock of that,” he commented.
