“Policing isn’t a political football to be kicked around”

ESSEX Police Federation has hit out at the Home Secretary after her recent comments about police funding.

Amber Rudd had lambasted police chiefs and crime commissioners who had called for extra funding earlier this month, saying that forces are sitting on £1.6bn reserves. She added: “I don’t just want to see you reaching for a pen to write a press release asking for more money from the Government.”

Steve Taylor, Federation Chairman, said the episode was an “embarrassment” and “disgusting”.

He said: “How can we expect the political leader of our organisation, the Police and Crime Commissioner, not to be lobbying on behalf of our organisation, in areas of funding, in areas of the media and press releases just because it’s making the Home Secretary uncomfortable? It’s disgusting.

“[Her comments] politicise policing and policing isn’t a political football to be kicked around. Our Chief Constables are purposefully independent of politics, and as such they don’t openly lobby or get involved in these types of things because they respect the integrity of the office. I wish the Home Secretary would respect the integrity of the Police and Crime Commissioners whose purpose, surely, is to lobby on behalf of local people”

PCCs have been given the responsibility to deliver policing at a local level and yet not been given enough cash to do the task in hand, Steve added.

“I have a lot of sympathy with Police and Crime Commissioners when they’re told by the Home Secretary, ‘Stop embarrassing me by asking me for more money’, when that’s exactly what the people of Essex need,” he said.

“Essex is the cheapest force in the country, and if you’re not going to give us more money nationally, then give us the opportunity to raise more money locally. I don’t think that’s an unreasonable position for anyone to hold.

“When you combine the central Government grant to policing with the precept from the council tax, Essex is the lowest figure in the country but is the 17th biggest force. We’re actually given the least amount of money to deliver that service and that’s not fair. It’s not fair on the people of Essex and it’s not fair on our members, who have to do more with less to provide that service.”