Police ordered to send text messages because speaking on the police radio system is too expensive

Police officers are being ordered to send texts rather than speak on their radios because of the sums charged by the firm that owns the police communications network.

While chief constables face unprecedented cutbacks, the company that operates the system on which all the emergency services communicate has seen a massive rise in profits. Last year Airwave Solutions’ profit margin outstripped even that of mobile-phone giant Vodafone.