Police chief to be allowed to moonlight

Greater Manchester’s new elected police chief will be free to moonlight in a second job — yet still receive the full £100,000 salary.

Home Secretary Theresa May announced that police and crime commissioners would be allowed to top up their earnings provided they were “clear with their electorate.”

And she rejected a call for their salary to be docked if they took a second job, as long as they declared the amount of time they will devote to it.

The announcement was quickly attacked as “nonsense” by some Labour candidates to be Commissioners, who warned of potential conflicts of interest.

In a statement to MPs, Ms May also announced she was accepting a sliding scale of salaries for the US-style crime-fighters, which means Greater Manchester’s will receive £100,000 a year.

The first directly-elected police chiefs — one of the most controversial policies since the election — will be chosen on 15 November.