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| Spending Review: Osborne refuses to rule out police cuts | Spending Review: Osborne refuses to rule out police cuts |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Chancellor George Osborne has refused to rule out cuts to the number of frontline police officers in an interview with the BBC's Andrew Marr. | Chancellor George Osborne has refused to rule out cuts to the number of frontline police officers in an interview with the BBC's Andrew Marr. |
| He said the counter-terrorism budget was being increased and more money would be spent on defence. | He said the counter-terrorism budget was being increased and more money would be spent on defence. |
| But asked to rule out police cuts he said: "Every public service has to make sure it is spending its money well." | |
| He said he had now reached a deal with all departments ahead of Wednesday's Spending Review. | He said he had now reached a deal with all departments ahead of Wednesday's Spending Review. |
| Mr Osborne denied reports he was still at war with Home Secretary Theresa May over cuts to the policing budget amid warnings from officers that further cuts would threaten Britain's ability to respond to a Paris-style attack. | |
| Laura Kuenssberg: Paris and the police | |
| "In the summer Budget we took the decision to increase our defence spending and increase our counter-terrorism budget," the chancellor said. | |
| "These were decisions taken before the terrible events in Paris and, of course, those events in Paris throw a spotlight on the threat we face but, of course, that threat existed before that terrible event," he told the BBC. | |
| "So when it comes to the Spending Review, we are going to make the argument that protecting the British people is our first duty as a government, that economic security is a vital part of national security. | |
| "And precisely because we are making difficult decisions in other parts of our budget, we can give our military more kit, we can increase our counter-terrorism budget by 30%." | |
| Some of the extra money for counter-terrorism would go to the police "to make sure we can deal with marauding gun attacks," he said. But he refused to rule out cuts to the number of frontline officers. | |
| "We will make sure Britain is properly defended from the terrorist threat," he added. | |
| Shadow chancellor's views on policing issue | |
| Labour's shadow chancellor John McDonnell said he supported more money for the intelligence services but was "really worried" about further cuts to police numbers. | |
| He told the BBC: "If he (Mr Osborne) cuts the police service in the way he's planned, that undermines our security. | |
| "I am saying to him directly, end the cuts to policing because all the police chiefs are saying you are putting our communities at risk. I will support him if he says, straightforwardly, policing cuts will not take place." |