£146k a year but only two apply for top job

Current chief Neil Rhodes retires in February and Lincolnshire were recently given permission to become the first force to look overseas for a successor.

According to reports, the job carries a salary of £146,986 - £3,500 more than the Prime Minister earns.

Of the two candidates to come forward so far, one has been asked to reapply.

Marc Jones, the county’s Police and Crime Commissioner, confirmed the vacancy had been re-advertised earlier this week and is confident quality candidates will emerge - despite the apparent lack of interest.

He said other forces across the country had encountered problems attracting a new chief constable.

He said: “There are very few people who would want to move their entire family around the country to take up this role and seven of the last 11 Chief Constables appointed in England and Wales have been from a pool of one, single applicant.

“There’s a lot less moving around going on and one of the factors that always influences these things is that other forces are going after the same pool of candidates as we are.

“One of the applicants we had before has been encouraged to re-apply but, in the meantime, we don’t have an issue if someone isn’t appointed by the time Neil Rhodes retires at the end of January.

“The Deputy Chief Constable, Gary Knighton, will take up the responsibilities and, in any case, I’d rather take my time to do my job and get the best possible candidate for Lincolnshire.”

In the meantime, Mr Jones has made changes to his own office by replacing the role of Deputy Chief Executive and creating four new posts, four of them suitable for young people.

He said: “When I came into the job, I assessed carefully the needs in my office and created two graduate intern jobs, two apprenticeships and a communications/media services contractor post.

“This isn’t an additional cost to the taxpayer but a reallocation of funds to do the things that I want to do. In effect, Lincolnshire Police and the Office of PCC are two separate organisations and I have a legal duty to engage with the public and get their views.”