Wiltshire Police Force paid informers £40,000 last year a Freedom of Information request has revealed. 

In total during the last seven years £244,935 was paid by the force to informants.

The Swindon Advertiser reports:

Data released under the Freedom of Information Act shows the force has paid covert human intelligence sources, known as CHIS, a total of £244,935 in the last seven financial years, ranging from £18,386.90 in 2005/6 to £45,874.25 in 2008/9 and £40,883.42 last year.

Wiltshire Police say they are value for money and have proven highly effective in protecting the public.

 But despite the cost to the public purse, the force has refused to reveal anything more for fear of identifying the assets, including how many are on its books, the range an informant can be paid, or what sort of people they are, for example, whether they include turned gang members or private investigators.

You can read the full story here. 

Matthew Burgess
http://www.mattburgess.co
I am a journalist and author. I am a journalist at the UK edition of WIRED magazine. In 2015, my first book Freedom of Information: A Practical Guide for UK Journalists, was published. My second book Reed Hastings: Building Netflix, was published in March 2020. I created FOI Directory in 2012 and have maintained it in my spare time ever since.