The
powers of the police in England and Wales are defined largely by statute law, with the main sources of power being the
Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 and the
Police Act 1996. This article covers the powers of territorial police forces only but a constable in one of the UK's special police forces (most often a member of the
British Transport Police) gains those powers while he/she is on loan to a territorial force or discovers an incident which is otherwise outside his/her statutory jurisdiction. In law, police powers are given to "
constables" (both full-time and
volunteer police officers). Some police powers are also available in more limited extent to
Police Community Support Officers and
Traffic Wardens (not to be confused with
parking attendants) as such persons are also members of a police force.