Furious Sale residents have slammed the Home Office’s ‘unjust and discriminatory’ decision to slash Greater Manchester Police funding by £6.4million.
The Nurseries Estate Home Watch Association is lobbying Greater Manchester MPs to ask questions in the House of Commons in the hope of provoking a debate on the floor of the house and redirect the funding back to Manchester.
Graham Roe, of the Nurseries Estate Home Watch Association, said that the Home Office is trying to justify the cuts by citing lower crime levels in Greater Manchester in recent years.
Mr Roe said: “The government seems hell-bent upon cutting funding here there and everywhere with little regard for the impact upon communities.
“You cannot go on cutting back on frontline staff and expect to maintain a credible police service.
“Sooner or later the thin blue line will become so thin that levels of crime and antisocial behaviour will rise with resulting declines in community safety and public protection.”
Greater Manchester Police and Crime Commissioner Tony Lloyd criticised the cuts which he argues are being used to fund the government’s own ‘pet projects’.
He said: Be in no doubt – this is money that is being taken directly from frontline policing here in Greater Manchester.
“It is funding that the Chief Constable could and should be using to keep the people I represent safe. Instead it is being used to fund pet projects that will be of little or no benefit to the people of Greater Manchester.”
The £6.4m of extra cuts breaks down as follows:
|
Project |
£ |
|---|---|
|
Police Innovation Fund |
2.65m |
|
IPCC |
0.95m |
|
HMIC inspection |
0.48m |
|
Direct entry scheme |
0.16m |
|
City of London Police |
0.11m |
|
National Police Coordination Centre |
0.05m |
|
Funding formula changes |
2m |
|
TOTAL |
6.4m |
Mr Lloyd added: “The money, which could pay for 145 police officers or 210 PCSOs, is being clawed back by government to fund unpopular schemes, such as the proposal to allow people to join the police service at a senior rank without having to have to walk the beat, and to shore up the largely-discredited Independent Police Complaints Commission.
“Remarkably, some money is even being taken from GMP to give to the City of London Police – the force that protects the banking industry.
“We were always expecting the government to do something like this, but the amount they are clawing back is outrageous.”
Neighbourhood Watch team members are concerned that the money taken away from the force would mean that Greater Manchester residents would be left vulnerable.
Nurseries Estate Home Watch Association member June Manning branded the decision as irresponsible.
She said: “I am sure residents in Manchester would be absolutely appalled, and
extremely concerned to learn our police force, who do a remarkably taxing job on our behalf, are to endure a severe cut in funding.
“They would be even more horrified to learn that those funds were being diverted, without good reason or transparency, to aid policing costs in the South of England.
She also argued that the decision perpetuates the north-south divide.
“There is no justification that could be voiced to show this to be a fair, just or an equal way of treating all residents in England in a similar manner.
“It does little to reassure us that our police force is valued by central government, and the proposed reduction in funding can only negatively impact on their policing and staffing capabilities.
Ms Manning is now calling for legal advice to be sought against the government.
She added: “The proposal should be withdrawn immediately as irresponsible as it will have severe consequences on protecting local residents by having reduced services and that will infringe or human rights compared to our counterparts in the South.
“In which case it might be appropriate for us to seek legal guidance on our rights as citizens, being discriminated against by our own government.”
Mr Lloyd has written to the Home Secretary asking her to justify the cuts, but has yet to receive a reply.
Picture courtesy of kenjonbro via Flickr, with thanks
