South West PCCs lobby to against further police cuts
Five Police and Crime Commisioners, including Devon and Cornwall PCC Tony Hogg have sent letters to Policing Minister Damian Green over potential further cuts to police funding.
PCCs from the South West have come together to voice their concerns on the dangers of further cutting police budgets which would see a reduction to policing numbers.
In the letter from from the PCCs they write: “In addition to grant reductions under the austerity programme we have recently faced a number of additional burdens.
“These include the direct imposition of higher costs in relation to national services such as PNC (police national computer). In addition, the growing use of ‘top slicing’ has the potential to divert more funds away from local policing.”
The PCCs are also worried about a lack of information about how the Home Office Innovation Fund will operate.
“To date, we have not received any information about the methodology that will be used to allocate this funding in the current financial year or the arrangements for 2014/15,” the letter continues.
The letter asks that Mr Green consider a greater involvement of PCCs when Government develops national initiatives which will have a big effect on local policing budgets.
It also asks that local authorities are allowed to raise council tax by more than two per cent without first holding a referendum. The letter states that the public would support such a move and that it would offset the costs to be imposed on local to expand the Independent Police Complaints Commission, which will have a direct effect on police officer numbers.
“The recent announcement of a further ‘top slice’ to meet the cost of expanding the Independent Police Complaints Commission (“IPCC”) is estimated in our region to require increases of up to three per cent in council tax to make good the potential funding reductions for IPCC and Innovation Fund,” the letter states.
“We appreciate the need to improve the national capability and the important role played by the IPCC. There needs to be a recognition that whilst funds will be diverted, a substantial work load will remain in force and will have to be locally funded. This must, therefore, impact on local front line numbers or on the level of the local precept.”
This is not the first time Mr Hogg has raised the subject of local funding with the Government.
Early this summer he critised Chancellor George Osborne’s police funding cuts of 5.75 per cent in 2014/15 and 4.9 per cent in 2015/16 which means that both further savings and increased revenue will be needed to maintain Devon and Cornwall's police officer numbers at 3,090.
“People are well aware how hard I have fought to keep police on our streets, and last year took the decision to raise the council tax policing precept by two per cent to maintain numbers above 3,000,” said Mr Hogg.
“I have joined forces with the other PCCs in a united effort to get a rightful share of police funding which takes full account of our large region, the geographical contrasts within it, and the enormous strain on our resources.”
The letter comes as a consultation is underway on a proposal to close station desks in a number of communities across the county in a bid to save £500,000.
