H & F Police Face Multi-Million Pound Shortfall |
Assembly Member calls for rethink as figures are revealed Local london Assembly Member Murad Qureshi is calling for a rethink as new figures appear to show Hammersmith and Fulham Police are facing a shortfall of £2.7 million next year. Hammersmith & Fulham's police force spent £38,552,190 last year. But figures released by the the Metropolitan Police under the Freedom of Information Act reveal their proposed budget for next year (2011/12) has been reduced to £35,808,174. And as well as this reduced Borough policing budget, the Royal Parks' police force will be losing over £2 million next year, down from £8,914,525 to £6,769,857. Murad, who is a Londonwide Labour London Assembly Member says the cuts are deeply worrying following the the recent looting, arson and riots in London. He says : "I'm deeply worried that slashing our local police will affect their ability to keep us safe and keep us feeling safe. We saw in August how important it is to have police on the streets when trouble hits. The mayor and the government should take note and reverse their police cuts." According to Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC), London is set to lose almost 3,000 uniformed officers by 2015 - 1,907 police officers and 902 police community support officers. This news comes shortly after it was revealed our borough is to have four fewer sergeants as a result of the Metropolitan Police review of Safer Neighbourhoods. The number of Safer Neighbourhood Team sergeants in the borough will be reduced from 16 to 12, with four sets of two wards sharing a single sergeant. The wards are: Addison & Avonmore and Brook Green September 8, 2011
|