THE RANK of Chief Inspector will be phased out by Wiltshire Police in a bid to save £1 million, reduce bureaucracy and simplify the force’s complex hierarchy. The move is part of a review into the force’s structure, which was launched to determine how best to empower staff to continue delivering a high quality service while doing away with red tape. A total of 20 Chief Inspector posts will be cut over a period of between 12 and 18 months. Other senior ranks could also go. Wiltshire Police Chief Const-able Pat Geenty said: “I want to create an empowered workforce where our staff feel capable and confident in making decisions that ultimately have the best interests of the public in mind. That means flattening our structure, reducing bureaucracy and closing the gap between what is happening on the front line and what is being said at a leadership level.” Wiltshire Police’s pledge to remove the rank means no Chief Inspectors will be forced to retire. “Clearly the removal of any rank structures requires careful and considered management. This is not something that we can achieve overnight,” said Chief Constable Geenty. Although supportive of the force’s attempt to reduce bureaucracy Wiltshire Police Federation warned the move would put more pressure on officers. Chairman Mike White said: “The removal of the Chief Inspector rank has been tried before, following the Sheehy report into policing in the mid 1990s. Those forces that tried it have all re-instated the rank. Hopefully we can learn the lessons from their experiences. “Changing the rank structure should be nationally agreed following consultation. This decision has been locally made with no consultation with the Police Federation."