Press
& Publicity
Friday 23 February 2007 - 237
AN EXTRA 12P A WEEK TO PROTECT FRONTLINE POLICING
Hertfordshire Police Authority stood by its commitment today (Friday) to protect frontline policing, even though it meant increasing Council Tax by 4.99%.
“This was a difficult decision to make - we do not take lightly our responsibility to reduce as much as possible the burden placed on council tax payers. However, the public continues to tell us that they want more officers on the streets. We felt the extra 12p a week (*Band D property) was justified to provide the increased numbers of Neighbourhood Constables and Police Community Support Officers in the county,” said Ian Laidlaw-Dickson, Chair of Hertfordshire Police Authority.
“We get the majority of our funding from Government grants and, as has happened in previous years, our grant settlement fell below the amount needed, even to maintain our current level of services. At the same time, Government repeated its threat of last year to cap authorities that increase Council Tax by 5% or more.”
When taking into account inflation and essential improvements to services, such as increased custody facilities, the Police Authority was faced with a budget gap of £3.5m.
“We have worked closely with the Constabulary to identify efficiencies and areas of service that can be reduced without impacting on frontline policing,” said Ian. “But this was still not enough and we took the decision today to use £1.3m of reserves to safeguard policing services in the county. However, in future years this may not be an option and we do have great worries about how the high level of policing services that we have come to expect will be maintained in the coming years. ”
Chief Constable Frank Whiteley said: "Whilst the financial situation next year will be challenging, the Constabulary will be working hard to meet increasing demands on policing in Hertfordshire and to minimise the impact of restricted resources and required savings. I welcome the support provided by the Police Authority through its budget decision and use of reserves.
“We recognise that the national financial position for police funding is likely to become increasingly restricted in future years. Despite this, I know that the officers and staff of the Constabulary will continue to work hard at driving crime and making Hertfordshire an even safer county.”
The Authority set its Revenue Budget for 2007/08 at £171.4m, an increase of £7.2m on last year, of which £114.4m comes from Government grants.
he Police Authority also receives a general Capital Grant from Government of £1.5m, which is £0.4m down on the previous year. However, by using receipts generated from the sale of its police houses and prudent borrowing, Hertfordshire is able to fund a Capital Programme of £21m. Over £15m will be spent on upgrading public access points, including a new police station and custody unit at Hatfield and an expansion of facilities at the Stevenage police station.
CLICK HERE for Council Tax Calculation Tables.
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