NORTH Yorkshire Police officers could be left struggling to pay the bills when a controversial bonus scheme - which will top £1 million in the county this year - comes to an end.

One-off annual bonuses, known as Special Priority Payments, are expected to cost the force £1,078,930 in 2006.

An average of £1,780 each will be paid to 606 of the force's 1,578 officers - almost 40 per cent of the force.

The biggest payments - of £3,934 - will be made to the force's eight tactical firearms advisors. The second biggest pay-outs, of £2,724, will be made to the 67 officers who work on the county's armed response vehicles - a total of £161,798.

The force's ten neighbourhood police inspectors, with two years service in that rank, will get the smallest pay-outs, of £360.

Mark Botham, chairman of the North Yorkshire Police Federation, slammed the scheme for being "divisive", and said he was concerned that if it was scrapped in December then some officers were going to find themselves almost £4,000 a year out of pocket.

The Government-backed bonus system was introduced nationwide in 2003 and is due to end in December this year.

It can be paid to up to 40 per cent of officers, and was designed to help chief constables retain experienced and qualified officers in roles which are difficult to fill, such as custody sergeants, firearms team members and community beat officers. The cash handouts have come under fire from grassroots police representatives for creating inequality and division among the ranks.

Mr Botham said many officers had found they were paid less than those working in identical positions, just because they had not served as long in the same rank.

He said: "The scheme is divisive because only a certain percentage of the force can get it. I don't agree with the way the money is allocated. How can it be right that a neighbourhood response officer with five years experience gets more than a response sergeant of three years, who has more responsibility?

"What about the officers who haven't served for as long but are doing exactly the same job? It was supposed to be based on roles but they get nothing.

"The scheme is set to be scrapped in December and there is going to be a new pay deal brokered. We are concerned that some officers could lose a substantial amount of money."

Updated: 09:32 Friday, March 03, 2006