The cost of meeting the rise in crime whilst investing to stem
that rise and protect the public has been revealed.
Evidence gathered by PCCs and Police Chiefs shows that £440m
extra is required in 2018/19 and £845m in 2019/20, an increase of
1.5% to 2% more than inflation in each year.
The Home Office asked PCCs and Police Chiefs to assess levels of
stretch and resilience in the service over the summer.
The rise in funding would provide an additional 5,000 officers to
deal with increased local policing demands from new sorts of
crime and increasing complexity, and an armed policing uplift of
a further 1,100 officers.
Nottinghamshire's Police and Crime Commissioner, said: "Over the past five
years police budgets have reduced by £2.3bn, representing a 25%
cut in grant. Police numbers have gone down by 20,000, meaning
there are less police on the streets. In fact, police numbers are
at their lowest for 30 years.
"The story is borne out in Nottinghamshire where savings of £54m
have been made over the past five years and the number of
officers and PCSOs has reduced."
"PCCs and Chief Constables are bidding for extra money - £440m
next year, increasing to £845m in 2019/20. If successful, that
would fund 5000 new officers (in England and Wales) over the
two-year period and an additional 1,100 armed officers to combat
the immediate terrorist threat.
"We're also bidding for extra funding to tackle cyber-crime,
fraud and counter terrorism.
"I'm absolutely determined to make sure that Nottinghamshire and
the East Midlands get their fair share."
The APCC and the NPCC have responded to a Home Office request to
collate evidence from across all 43 police forces and associated
agencies and assess levels of strain and resilience across the
country.
The request comes at a time when pressures on police time and
resources are increasing. Whether it is from the increase in
recorded crime, up by 13 per cent this year, more complex crimes
being committed and a growing terrorist threat, the police, more
than ever, are being called on to respond.
The current funding arrangements, in place since the 2015
Spending Review, mean that overall police spending has been
protected, in real terms, between 2015/16 to 2019/20. However,
due to the change in demand, the current "flat cash" settlement
for local forces, which does not insulate them from inflation or
the recent changes in the national pay settlement, is no longer
considered sufficient.
added: "I am aware that
officers and staff, whose work we value so greatly, have become
stretched like never before.
"Take local policing, the bedrock of policing in this country,
and the increasing complexity of criminality: the ability to
deliver this key component of policing is becoming ever more
difficult. We believe that a lack of investment will lead to
increases in crime and a reduction of police and state
legitimacy."
