Friday 22 February 2008 - HPA 253

POLICE AUTHORITY COUNCIL TAX INCREASE HELD AT 4.99%

For the fourth year running Hertfordshire Police Authority has kept its Council Tax increase below 5%.

Police Authority Chair, Ian Laidlaw-Dickson said: “Despite a below inflation grant from the Government, Hertfordshire police staff numbers are now at their highest ever levels, including 2,148 police officers and 252 Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs).

“In a recent independent survey, residents told us that they supported increases in council tax to pay for greater investment in policing. Unlike many Police Authorities, we have managed to give the Constabulary the resources it needs to continue to provide high quality policing across the county, whilst keeping the level of council tax increase to 4.99%. This means someone living in a Band D property will pay an extra £6.50 a year for policing.”

The increase has been set at a level that avoids any risk of the Government capping the Authority by requiring it to set a lower rate.

Ian added: “A number of Police Authorities have decided to breach the Government’s capping levels but because the Authority and the Force continue to effectively manage our resources, a larger increase is not necessary this year. We also thank those bodies who make direct contributions to policing through funding Police and Community Support Officers (PCSOs), most notably the County Council who provide £1.3m - one of largest single contributors in the whole country.”

To keep council tax as low as possible, the Authority will make some use of its reserves to meet the funding gap between government grants and budget requirements this year. This will allow significant investment to be made in improving the action taken to support victims of domestic violence.

Chief Constable Frank Whiteley said: "Hertfordshire is a safe place to live with crime coming down by record levels. Hertfordshire Constabulary is also a good and improving force which is increasing crime detection rates and enjoys relatively high levels of satisfaction and confidence from our communities.

“This budget will provide us with a solid platform to build on this success, continue to improve services and continue our commitment to Neighbourhood policing. We will build our capability to tackle cross-border and organised crime, particularly by taking forward collaboration work with Bedfordshire and other forces. In addition we want to tackle Domestic Violence more fully, make full use of our new custody facilities opening this year in Stevenage and Hertford and take off our streets the small minority of criminals who commit a disproportionate amount of crime.

“It is a budget which will allow us to continue to make Hertfordshire safer.”

The Authority also receives a general Capital Grant from Government of £2.26m. This will contribute to an ambitious £13.6m investment programme in the coming year, funded from capital receipts and prudent borrowing. The programme includes new police stations at Hatfield, Ware and Hertford and the redevelopment of Stevenage Police station. They will provide a stronger visible presence in local communities, improve public access to police services and substantially increase the number of cells available in the county.

Herts Beat 2007
Central Area

Herts Beat 2007
Western Area