MP Helen Jones has expressed alarm over the likely impact on policing in Warrington of a £20 million cut over the next two years.
The Warrington North Labour MP says people in the borough will be rightly concerned about policing in their community as a result of the cutback.
She said: “Some estimates have suggested that as many as 300 police officers could be lost in Cheshire over the next 4 years.
“I am very concerned that the fall in crime by over a third that we have seen over the last decade could be reversed if the police are denied the resources they need to do their job. I have been organising a petition against cutting the number of police officers and residents have been very eager to sign-up.
“The Tories have broken their promise to be tough on crime and the Lib Dems have done exactly the opposite of what they said they would do before the election. “Nick Clegg promised 3,000 extra police officers but instead he is taking 20,000 officers off our streets across the country.”
Cheshire Police have been more affected by the cuts as it receives a greater proportion of its funding from central government than from council tax. Before these cuts Cheshire Police Force received 70.7 per cent of its funding from central government and 26.3 per cent from council tax.
The result could be that residents are forced to pay more for policing but see less police protecting their streets, Ms Jones claimed.
Next year funding will be cut by 7.5 per cent in real terms or £9.6m.
The following year, funding will be cut by 8.7 per cent in real terms or £10.4m
Over the four years of the government’s spending review police force funding will be cut by around 20 per cent in real terms, she said.
1 Comment
We have paid more and more over the last 13 years of her useless government and seen a rise in anti social behaviour and a rise in crime levels (despite their great efforts to massage the figures to say the contrary) You NEVER see a copper on the beat these days unless it is at a football or rugby match. Instead we get the useless PCSO who has no powers except to call for a proper copper who never comes….. Give it a rest Helen; you were useless as a government and are a bloody pain in the bum as an MP who is now taking every opportunity to snipe at the new government who are left to clear up your mess. Just shut up and go and spend your expenses