‘Enormous’ cuts to Greater Manchester Police which will see 1,500 fewer police officers on the streets by 2015 have disproportionally affected the city, according to a report released today.
The fears regarding the enormity of the challenge faced by the police come despite news that the force has achieved one of the greatest reductions in crime levels in the country.
The Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) study assessed how the slashing of the police budget by £145.5million, expected to be implemented by 2015, has affected forces nationwide.
It says that Greater Manchester Police’s challenge to cut the costs is ‘difficult’, however the force had a strong response with a reduction in crime since cuts were implemented in 2011.
GMP Chief Constable Sir Peter Fahy said, “We are pleased that we have continued to reduce crime but many other aspects of our work such as involvement in mental health cases, protecting vulnerable people in general and historic enquiries have increased.
“There is a serious concern that as the number of staff reduce, we lose our capacity to do preventative and proactive work and just react to things after they have happened.
“The budget reductions have involved huge amounts of change and reorganisation and upheaval for staff and many painful decisions such as reducing staffing at local police stations.
“The report shows we have got on with the challenge given to us and tried to do our best by the public.”
The spending review period, between March 2011 and March 2015, was put in place in October 2010, when the government announced that central funding to the police service in England and Wales needed to be reduced by 20%.
The HMIC’s ‘Valuing the Police Programme’ report focused on how forces are responding to budget reduction, the impact on the workforce and the public and how forces are managing current and future risks.
The cuts mean there will be 1,525 fewer police officers in Greater Manchester Police by March 2015.
Savings of £137.6million have already been planned by the force, however they still have £8million to find.
Tony Lloyd, Greater Manchester’s Police and Crime Commissioner, said it is to the credit of every man and woman at the force that frontline policing is being maintained in these incredibly difficult circumstances.
“The cuts to the policing budget in Greater Manchester have been enormous,” he said.
“The report recognises that these cuts have disproportionally affected Greater Manchester.
“We have worked innovatively with other agencies in the region to deliver a programme of reform to our public services that is starting to have an impact.
“This shows that by working together we really can deliver benefits to everyone in Greater Manchester.”
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