Nottinghamshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner says a “perfect storm” of rising crime and falling budgets is a threat to public safety, while also warning officers “don’t have a grip” on online offenders.
In a direct attack on the Government, Paddy Tipping told the Labour Party conference he was worried years of shrinking budgets were finally having an affect on performance and morale.
Figures show crime in Nottinghamshire has risen 12 per cent in the last year – and knife crime has gone up by almost a third.
“They [the Government] claim they have protected the police budget, but since 2015 these have been cut by a further £200 million progressively year on year,” Mr Tipping told the conference in Brighton.
“Since 2010, £2.3 billion has been taken from the police budget – a 25 per cent cut.”
He added: “Cyber-crime and on-line fraud is going through the roof. We don’t have a grip on it. Rape and serious sexual assault reports have doubled in some parts of the country.
“We face a perfect storm – crime up – resources down.”
The Government responded by insisting it had protected overall police spending “in real terms” since 2015.
Mr Tipping also accused the Conservative Government of ‘devaluing’ police officers by not keeping pay rises in line with inflation and warned local policing was being eroded, with figures showing fewer people believe officers have a ‘high visibility’ in their local area.
Mr Tipping, in charge of setting the Nottinghamshire Police budget and monitoring its performance, was re-elected to the post as a Labour candidate last May.
Nottinghamshire Police has around £10m a year less to spend compared with five years ago, and has closed police stations, re-organised investigative teams and merged departments with other forces to cope.
In July campaigners blamed cuts to the police budget for the rise in knife crime across the city and county – which has seen officers being called out to two knife offences a day in 2016-17, including several murders.
Nottinghamshire Police Chief Constable Craig Guildford responded by saying the force would replace officers who work with schools to beat knife crime, after some were lost because of cuts.
Home Secretary Amber Rudd said in May the Government “can control the budget and reduce crime,” and pointed to several years of falling crime rates before 2017 as evidence reductions were safe.
A Home Office spokesman added: “This Government has protected overall police spending in real terms since the 2015 Spending Review and crimes traditionally measured by the independent Crime Survey for England and Wales have fallen by well over a third since 2010.
“We are sensitive to the pressures the police are under and that is why Ministers have begun a programme of engagement with forces to better understand the demands they face and how these can best be managed.
“Since 2010 police forces have increased the proportion of officers working at the frontline and proven that you can continue to cut crime with a smaller, more agile workforce.”
