General Secretary

The membership will have received notification of the death, on Friday 27 September, of Deputy General Secretary Joe Simpson. This was extremely upsetting for his family and partner, but also for those POA members and employees who had known Joe for many years. Joe Simpson was more than just a Deputy General Secretary to me; he was a man whom I considered to be a long-time friend and I will miss him.

I would like to thank the membership for electing me as General Secretary for a fourth term of office.

Please find attached the Certificate of Result from Civica Election Services.

A giant of a trade unionist, a respected, compassionate, knowledgeable man, and a friend

POA Circular 057/2024 promulgated the timetable for the above election.

I set out in my Gatelodge summer edition 2024 the POA five-year plan as agreed at Annual Conference in May 2024 at Eastbourne.

The current position of the General Secretary expires in May 2025 after Annual Conference.

Reflecting on POA membership growth, plans to work with the incoming government, and our fiveyear strategy.

Our campaign to tackle violence in the workplace goes to Westminster

Watch Steve Gillan interviewed on Sky News regarding the rising violence against prison officers