Stephen Morgan MP has joined local Police on a night patrol in Portsmouth in his latest intervention to help support those working to make the city safer and bring down crime.
The Portsmouth MP joined a local Police Sergeant and others in the Charles Dickens area on Friday evening to learn further insights about the specific challenges and issues the area is facing to public safety.
The patrol also included an opportunity for the local representative to hear first-hand how junior officers are being coached, with one being tutored as part of the late-night exercise.
It comes after the city MP recently made making the city safer a ‘top priority’, after launching a city-wide survey to better understand local views and challenges for antisocial behaviour and public safety in Portsmouth.
Meanwhile, recent research from the Labour Party has revealed there are 708 fewer police officers on the frontline in Hampshire than in 2010. There are also 110 fewer community support officers (PCSOs) in Hampshire police force area.
The Member of Parliament for Portsmouth South, Stephen Morgan, commented,
“On the night patrol I saw first-hand the challenges we are facing locally to protect public safety. It was a useful opportunity to share constituent concerns about crime in the local area directly with those who are working to keep us safe.
“Our local Police officers are working tirelessly to keep our streets safe, but it’s painfully clear they are having to do more with less.
“This government has continually let down our officers. Hampshire has one of the poorest levels of local police funding and frontline officers in the country, and now the Home Secretary has given officers a real-terms pay cut. It’s no wonder the Police Federation has lost its confidence in her.
“I will continue to work on behalf of the city’s police and my constituents to ensure government delivers the fair pay and funding our police deserve, as well as its promises to keep us all safe.”
You can complete Mr Morgan’s survey via the link on his website: https://www.stephenmorgan.org.uk/have-your-say-crime-and-safety-in-portsmouth/
