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Tory spin on police numbers exposed as 19 per cent drop in frontline police at Hampshire police force

By 1 August 2021No Comments

New Labour analysis lays bare the huge gaps in the workforce at Hampshire police after ten years of Tory cuts.

Over the course of the last decade under successive Tory governments, the number of police on the streets in Hampshire has been decimated.

Research from the Labour Party reveals 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.

To put pressure on the Government to properly support our police forces and put more criminals behind bars, the Labour Party, led by Keir Starmer, has launched its Safer Communities campaign, with pledges to crack down on anti-social behaviour and end violence against women and girls.

Stephen Morgan, MP for Portsmouth South, said:

“A decade of Conservative cuts has left police officers doing more with less.

“These cuts undermine the efforts of hard-working frontline officers and have real consequences for the fight against crime. Crime is on the rise and Hampshire police responses have had to be rationed.

“Instead of funding and paying our police force fairly, the Tories offer only pay cuts and gimmicks. Its time this government took the safety of our communities seriously and gave us back our bobbies.”

Sarah Jones MP, Labour’s Shadow Minister for Policing and the Fire Service, said: 

“The Tories have spent a decade cutting our police workforce, leaving communities across the country exposed.   

“These figures expose the decimation the Tories have caused community policing. While cuts to police staff mean that even new police recruits will end up behind desks backfilling staff roles, instead of on the beat.  

“The Government’s new crime plan is in reality a bunch of rehashed policies designed to distract from the damage they have caused. When coupled with an insulting police pay freeze and failure to consult them on the crime plan, it’s no wonder frontline police have lost confidence in the Home Secretary.”