Increased funding for policing announced today
Policing Minister Nick Hurd today revealed the latest finance settlement for PCCs across the country to fund their forces, with next year’s Central Grant funding allocation to Lancashire staying at around £190m.
Clive Grunshaw, Lancashire’s Police and Crime Commissioner said following the announcement:
“I welcome any new money which comes into policing to help keep people safe, however this announcement fails to deliver any new money from Government directly towards policing here in Lancashire.
“The Government need to be clear, based on their announcement today, any increase in local funding is completely reliant on Police and Crime Commissioners raising Council Tax by the highest amount we possibly can.
“With inflation at its highest for years and increasing pressures on a service which has seen Lancashire lose 800 officers and more than 400 police staff, the Government knows this means Commissioners will need to raise council tax to even maintain the service residents need and deserve.
“After years of disingenuously claiming to be protecting police budgets, when forces like Lancashire have received less and less, the Government now expects local council tax payers to bail them out. This announcement doesn’t come close to addressing the issues faced by Lancashire police after cutting too far and too fast for the last seven years.”
