VALERIE VAZ MP SAYS POLICE FUNDING SETTLEMENT DOES NOT GO FAR ENOUGH

The provisional Police Funding Settlement was announced in the House of Commons on 13 December 2018 a week after it was due to be published.

Valerie Vaz MP said:

“The provisional Police Funding Settlement simply does not go far enough. Police numbers are now at the lowest level in three decades. Since 2010 over 21,000 police officers have been lost, over 16,000 police staff and over 6,000 community support officers have been axed. West Midlands Police has suffered a cut of £165 million since 2010 and a loss of 2,200 Officers and 338 Police Community Support Officers.

I was a signatory to a letter to the Chancellor earlier this month along with 19 other Labour MPs from the West Midlands as Government cuts have led to rising crime across the region. A number of constituents have contacted me as victims of crime. Violent crime has doubled in Walsall over the last 5 years and burglaries have been widespread. One constituent showed me recording from a CCTV camera showing a gang entering their home and another had a minibus stolen.

Police recorded violent crime is now at the highest on record and has increased by 10% in the last 12 months. Knife offences is at the highest level since records began, arrests have halved in a decade and unsolved crimes stand at 2 million.

Despite numerous warnings from senior police figures including from West Midlands Chief Constable Dave Thompson, the Police Service faces yet further real terms cuts.

The Government is failing in its primary duty to keep our communities safe. Walsall needs more officers on the street.”