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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
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| Call to end police funding 'shambles' | Call to end police funding 'shambles' |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| An independent panel should assist the Home Office in devising a new funding formula for police forces in England and Wales, a committee of MPs has said. | An independent panel should assist the Home Office in devising a new funding formula for police forces in England and Wales, a committee of MPs has said. |
| A statistical error in October led some forces to wrongly assume they would be losing money for 2016-17, while others thought their budgets were to increase. | A statistical error in October led some forces to wrongly assume they would be losing money for 2016-17, while others thought their budgets were to increase. |
| The Home Affairs Select Committee says it hopes its proposal will help remedy "the shambles we have seen so far". | The Home Affairs Select Committee says it hopes its proposal will help remedy "the shambles we have seen so far". |
| The government said it would consider the recommendations carefully. | The government said it would consider the recommendations carefully. |
| The amount of money each police force receives from the government is based on a funding formula, which assesses population size, social and economic factors, crime rates and other data. | The amount of money each police force receives from the government is based on a funding formula, which assesses population size, social and economic factors, crime rates and other data. |
| Last month, the government delayed proposed changes to the way the money is allocated after acknowledging its plans had been based on flawed calculations. | Last month, the government delayed proposed changes to the way the money is allocated after acknowledging its plans had been based on flawed calculations. |
| It admitted the wrong set of figures had been used to decide deprivation levels within each police area. | It admitted the wrong set of figures had been used to decide deprivation levels within each police area. |
| In its report, the committee praises Devon and Cornwall Police and Andrew White, chief executive of the office of the force's police and crime commissioner, for exposing the statistical error. | |
| Home Affairs Committee chairman Keith Vaz said called it a "real David and Goliath situation". | |
| "You have the might of the Home Office and all their economists, statisticians and senior civil servants - and there you have Devon and Cornwall, asking for data, paying for their own data and exposing the error," he said. | |
| The Home Affairs Committee suggests a panel made up of auditors, accountants, statisticians and police policy experts assist the government to reach the new formula. | The Home Affairs Committee suggests a panel made up of auditors, accountants, statisticians and police policy experts assist the government to reach the new formula. |
| Out-of-date | Out-of-date |
| Mr Vaz said the current police funding formula had become unfit for purpose, but the recent errors had "gravely damaged" the service's confidence in the creation of a new deal. | |
| "Police forces found themselves on a rollercoaster, where at the stroke of a pen they saw their funding allocation plummet in some cases and rise meteorically in others, with nobody able to explain why," he added. | "Police forces found themselves on a rollercoaster, where at the stroke of a pen they saw their funding allocation plummet in some cases and rise meteorically in others, with nobody able to explain why," he added. |
| Chancellor George Osborne said in the Autumn Statement there would be no cuts to the police budget in real terms, and Mr Vaz said this gave the Home Office a "real opportunity". | Chancellor George Osborne said in the Autumn Statement there would be no cuts to the police budget in real terms, and Mr Vaz said this gave the Home Office a "real opportunity". |
| "We hope the assistance and advice of external experts will deliver a fair and effective funding formula." | "We hope the assistance and advice of external experts will deliver a fair and effective funding formula." |
| The committee said funding for police needed to recognise the "full range" of demands on forces. | The committee said funding for police needed to recognise the "full range" of demands on forces. |
| It said this included specific local issues caused by policing airports and tourist areas; emerging offences such as cyber-crime, child exploitation and radicalisation; and counter-terrorism resources for all forces across the country. | It said this included specific local issues caused by policing airports and tourist areas; emerging offences such as cyber-crime, child exploitation and radicalisation; and counter-terrorism resources for all forces across the country. |
| Policing minister Mike Penning said: "The current model for allocating police funding is complex, opaque and out-of-date. That was why we consulted on principles for reform of funding arrangements... | Policing minister Mike Penning said: "The current model for allocating police funding is complex, opaque and out-of-date. That was why we consulted on principles for reform of funding arrangements... |
| "We have always said that we will only be successful in achieving our aim of building a fit-for-purpose and sustainable model with considerable input from policing partners. The government notes the committee's report and will respond formally in due course." | "We have always said that we will only be successful in achieving our aim of building a fit-for-purpose and sustainable model with considerable input from policing partners. The government notes the committee's report and will respond formally in due course." |