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| Police forces all face major budget cuts | Police forces all face major budget cuts |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Every police force in England and Wales is preparing for major budget cuts over the next five years, the BBC has found. | Every police force in England and Wales is preparing for major budget cuts over the next five years, the BBC has found. |
| Forces are facing a 5% cut in government funding in 2015/16 and more cuts after the general election. | Forces are facing a 5% cut in government funding in 2015/16 and more cuts after the general election. |
| Some forces are planning to reduce officer numbers to help them operate on smaller budgets. | Some forces are planning to reduce officer numbers to help them operate on smaller budgets. |
| To lessen the impact, 34 forces plan an increase of the precept - the part of the council tax put towards policing - over the forthcoming year. | To lessen the impact, 34 forces plan an increase of the precept - the part of the council tax put towards policing - over the forthcoming year. |
| Gwent's Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Ian Johnston said the scale of planned cuts has not "been understood by the public or politicians". His force is facing a deficit of £18.9m by 2018/19. | Gwent's Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Ian Johnston said the scale of planned cuts has not "been understood by the public or politicians". His force is facing a deficit of £18.9m by 2018/19. |
| But former policing minister Damian Green said forces could do more to save money. | But former policing minister Damian Green said forces could do more to save money. |
| Cuts forecasts | Cuts forecasts |
| The expected budget cuts come after a reduction of 20% since 2011 in the amount spent by the Home Office on the police. | The expected budget cuts come after a reduction of 20% since 2011 in the amount spent by the Home Office on the police. |
| After 2015/16, all forces are bracing themselves for further cuts amounting to hundreds of millions of pounds. | After 2015/16, all forces are bracing themselves for further cuts amounting to hundreds of millions of pounds. |
| The exact level of savings required will depend on the outcome of the general election. | The exact level of savings required will depend on the outcome of the general election. |
| Some PCCs have produced forecasts of budget cuts to 2019, others until 2020, among them: | Some PCCs have produced forecasts of budget cuts to 2019, others until 2020, among them: |
| In Cumbria, under the PCC's "change programme" to deliver savings of £10m by 2019, the force will be "resolving some issues to the satisfaction of callers without deploying an officer to the scene". | In Cumbria, under the PCC's "change programme" to deliver savings of £10m by 2019, the force will be "resolving some issues to the satisfaction of callers without deploying an officer to the scene". |
| Proposals from Hampshire's PCC, Simon Hayes, say that operational policing "can no longer be ring-fenced" and that front-line services "need to be reduced to meet the financial budget". | Proposals from Hampshire's PCC, Simon Hayes, say that operational policing "can no longer be ring-fenced" and that front-line services "need to be reduced to meet the financial budget". |
| Home Secretary Theresa May has warned there will have to be further cuts if the Conservatives form the next government. | Home Secretary Theresa May has warned there will have to be further cuts if the Conservatives form the next government. |
| She has suggested integrating the three emergency services - police, fire, ambulance - is one way to save money. | She has suggested integrating the three emergency services - police, fire, ambulance - is one way to save money. |
| Labour says it will help police forces find significant savings by reducing the costs they pay for equipment, IT and other services. | Labour says it will help police forces find significant savings by reducing the costs they pay for equipment, IT and other services. |
| 'Shift resources' | 'Shift resources' |
| Peter Vaughan, acting president of the Association of Chief Police Officers, said falling crime levels do not mean police forces need less money beacause "if I look at my own force, for example, crime is only 28% of what we deal with on a daily basis". | |
| Greater Manchester PCC Tony Lloyd said the government should look at funding cuts again. | Greater Manchester PCC Tony Lloyd said the government should look at funding cuts again. |
| He told BBC Breakfast there had been 8,000 officers in his force as recently as 2010, but there could drop to 5,500 "if the present projected cuts go ahead". | He told BBC Breakfast there had been 8,000 officers in his force as recently as 2010, but there could drop to 5,500 "if the present projected cuts go ahead". |
| Such a reduction would be "a huge change in police numbers", he added. | Such a reduction would be "a huge change in police numbers", he added. |
| Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said Tory plans threatened "serious risks to policing and community safety". | |
| But Tory MP Damian Green said police had coped well with cuts so far, adding: "We've only actually scratched the surface with what can be done both with reorganisation and with technology." | |
| Cuts collaborations | Cuts collaborations |
| The analysis also shows that the precept will increase in three-quarters of areas in the next financial year to offset central government cuts. | The analysis also shows that the precept will increase in three-quarters of areas in the next financial year to offset central government cuts. |
| Of the 34 forces planning to increase the precept, 30 will do so by just under 2%. | Of the 34 forces planning to increase the precept, 30 will do so by just under 2%. |
| In most cases it is thought that will mean householders having to pay a few pounds more each year in their council tax - on top of any other rises imposed by local authorities. | In most cases it is thought that will mean householders having to pay a few pounds more each year in their council tax - on top of any other rises imposed by local authorities. |
| That is a significant threshold as PCCs in England who want to raise the precept by 2% or more have to hold a referendum - which is what Bedfordshire's PCC, Olly Martins, is doing on general election day. | That is a significant threshold as PCCs in England who want to raise the precept by 2% or more have to hold a referendum - which is what Bedfordshire's PCC, Olly Martins, is doing on general election day. |
| He is proposing a precept rise to maintain police recruitment and plug a £6m budget gap in 2019. | He is proposing a precept rise to maintain police recruitment and plug a £6m budget gap in 2019. |
| "A rise of 15.8% would restore effective neighbourhood policing in all areas and balance the budget until beyond the next Parliament," he says on his website. | "A rise of 15.8% would restore effective neighbourhood policing in all areas and balance the budget until beyond the next Parliament," he says on his website. |
| In Wales, which has different rules, three forces will increase the precept by between 3.44% and 5% - while it will be lowered by 5% in Dyfed Powys, the only Welsh force where there will be a reduction. | In Wales, which has different rules, three forces will increase the precept by between 3.44% and 5% - while it will be lowered by 5% in Dyfed Powys, the only Welsh force where there will be a reduction. |
| Force collaborations | Force collaborations |
| Many PCCs say further cuts will inevitably mean fewer officers, as most policing costs go on staffing. | Many PCCs say further cuts will inevitably mean fewer officers, as most policing costs go on staffing. |
| The number of officers currently stands at 127,000 - the lowest level since September 2001 - though Labour promise to reverse planned cuts of 1,100 officer posts in 2015/16. | The number of officers currently stands at 127,000 - the lowest level since September 2001 - though Labour promise to reverse planned cuts of 1,100 officer posts in 2015/16. |
| Lancashire's Commissioner, Clive Grunshaw, says by April his force will have lost 700 officers and 500 staff - losses that he claims could double by 2020/21 if the cuts continue at the current pace. | Lancashire's Commissioner, Clive Grunshaw, says by April his force will have lost 700 officers and 500 staff - losses that he claims could double by 2020/21 if the cuts continue at the current pace. |
| But some PCCs appear to be rising to the challenge of making savings. | But some PCCs appear to be rising to the challenge of making savings. |
| Suffolk Police's Commissioner, Tim Passmore, says the force is undergoing a "radical service redesign so that the constabulary can continue to keep people safe". | Suffolk Police's Commissioner, Tim Passmore, says the force is undergoing a "radical service redesign so that the constabulary can continue to keep people safe". |
| The redesign includes "continued collaboration" with Norfolk Police. | The redesign includes "continued collaboration" with Norfolk Police. |
| Other so-called "strategic alliances" include Warwickshire and West Mercia, Avon and Somerset and Wiltshire, Devon and Cornwall and Dorset, and South Yorkshire and Humberside. | Other so-called "strategic alliances" include Warwickshire and West Mercia, Avon and Somerset and Wiltshire, Devon and Cornwall and Dorset, and South Yorkshire and Humberside. |