- Redcar
MP slammed the Prime Minister for cuts to Cleveland Police
leading to the loss of officers and a crime spree
- Anna
also called on to restore government funding
for neighbourhood policing to make our streets
safe
At Prime Minister’s Questions today
(21st February 2018) Labour MP for Redcar
confronted on policing cuts which have
seen crime on Teesside skyrocket.
The Cleveland area has seen a £40 million cut to its budget in
real terms since 2010/11, the year when first entered government as
Home Secretary. The cuts have led to the loss of over 500
officers on Teesside’s streets.
Over that same period, reported crime across the Cleveland Police
area has seen an 18.3% increase.
For Redcar and Cleveland Borough, reported crime has increased by
9.9% and violent crime is up by a massive 46.4% since March 2011.
There have been several public meetings called by residents and
local business owners in the borough who are scared and angry
about the crime blighting local communities, including one on
Tuesday night at the Cleveland Bay in East Redcar. At that
meeting local MP Anna pledged to take residents' voices down to
Parliament the next day.
Speaking at Prime Minister’s Questions today, Anna asked
:
*Check against delivery*
“Last night I attended a meeting of hundreds of Redcar residents
who are deeply concerned about rising levels of crime and
anti-social behaviour.
“Crime in Redcar has increased 18% since 2011, we have lost over
500 officers, and suffered £40 million worth of cuts to our local
policing budgets.
“Will the Prime Minister commit straightaway to giving back the
money for neighbourhood policing and will she apologise to
the constituents of Redcar and Cleveland who have had to put
their hands back in their pockets through the precept to
compensate for her massive cuts?”
In response, the Prime Minister stated extra funding was being
provided for police forces and that it was up to police and crime
commissioners to decide how that money is spent.
In reality, Cleveland Police is receiving the same cash
allocation in 2018/19 as it received in 2017/18.
Speaking afterwards, Anna said:
“The Prime Minister is out of touch with the real situation on
our streets. On her watch, first as Home Secretary and now as
Prime Minister, police budgets have been slashed and crime has
shot through the roof.
“The hard work of our dedicated police officers is undermined by
the force being spread too thinly. Residents are being asked to
reach into their own pockets through the local precept and pay
more for less as we will still have fewer officers than before.
Government cuts are having real consequences to peoples' lives.
“The stories I heard at the public meeting worried me deeply. If
the cuts don’t stop and investment in neighbourhood policing
doesn’t start, I fear people who are desperate to protect their
families and communities will take matters into their own hands.”
