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Luxembourg's plan to introduce municipal police units under the direction of mayors faces practical challenges due to current staff shortages, according to concerns raised by the National Syndicate of the Grand Ducal Police (SNPGL)
On Wednesday, the new Police Minister, Léon Gloden, explained that the proposed local police forces would be subordinate to municipalities while continuing to be part of the overall police corps. This would ensure there would be no division between police and gendarmerie, as used to be the case in the past.
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The municipal police units would seek to maintain order under the jurisdiction of mayors, but could also take offenders to police stations - for example, removing beggars outside shop entrances.
This will come as welcome news to mayors such as Luxembourg City's Lydie Polfer, who recently proposed a begging ban between certain hours of the day. "You can't say that mayors should be responsible for maintaining security, order and propriety in their district, without giving them the means to guarantee it," she argued.
The police union SNPGL said municipal police units could work in theory, but would be difficult to implement in practice due to the shortage of staff within the current police force. The union also underlined that municipal officers would require the same training as existing police officers, without depleting the current staff levels. Minister Gloden is yet to meet with the police union, although the SNPGL is hoping to secure a meeting soon.
Luxembourg City is unlikely to get rid of the private security patrols any time soon, with the municipal council pushing for better cooperation with the police until there are sufficient officers. The council is also hoping the ban on begging will still pass.
