The Federation‘s national committee decided on Thursday to ballot its 135,000 members over whether or not they should have full industrial rights.

The staff association was created by statute in 1919 after the failure of the last national police strike organised by the unrecognised national union of police and prison officers.

A similar ballot in May 2008 led to a resounding 87% of those who voted demanding full industrial rights for the police in the absence of a binding arbitration process to settle pay disputes.