The reality behind Boris Johnson’s police cuts
Everyone knows that police forces are facing major budget reductions. Yet, the Mayor of London has said he is both increasing police numbers and boosting the frontline, claiming London will be “the envy of every police force in the country” and will “buck the trend”.
The reality behind the Mayor’s claims is a little different.
In terms of the numbers, the Mayor is budgeting for 32,320 officers this year, a fall of 771 from last year’s budgeted 33,091. When challenged, the Mayor argued that last year’s budget did not reflect the reality, as a recruitment freeze meant the force was significantly under strength.
Yet, taking a snapshot from February 2011, there were 32,285 officers in the Met. The Mayor is budgeting for just 35 more officers next year – hardly a dramatic increase.
The Mayor’s claim of a 500 officer ‘boost’ to the frontline has been at the expense of civilian staff such as Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs), despite H.M. Inspectorate of Constabulary’s value for money advice to the contrary.
Rather than indulging in the political ping pong of conflicting claims over what size force we need, I think Londoners should be much more concerned about whether the resources we do have are being effectively used to make our communities safer, and whether the Mayor is being honest about the challenges we face.
Furthermore, other roles that would be considered ‘frontline’ are being reduced, such as cutting 100 sergeants from Safer Neighbourhood Teams.
And the plans to cut traffic wardens and their managers include the creation of 16 sergeant posts to supervise the work of traffic PCSOs instead. The sergeants will be doing work previously carried out by cheaper traffic warden managers, with each handling the administration for 11 PCSOs who patrol TfL red routes.
I voted against the Mayor’s overall budget, as he hadn’t got the priorities right in making cuts. Similarly, I voted against the police budget at the MPA, as I don’t think they fully explored options that could have avoided potentially damaging cuts such as the 100 Safer Neighbourhood sergeants.
I’m concerned the political imperative to play the officer numbers game has led to some questionable decisions in value for money terms, particularly swapping staff for fewer more expensive officers in the same roles.
The Mayor heralding the Met as a special case and muddying the water around the figures is unhelpful, as well as being parsimonious with the truth.
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This is a guest post. Jenny Jones is a London Assembly Member, representing the Green Party. She is also leader of the Green Group and Chair of the Planning and Housing Committee.
· Other posts by Jenny Jones AM
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Reader comments
Ken Livingstone’s last budget in amy 2008 was to increase police by 1000 by the end of that year and by anotehr 1000 the next, boris cut the 2009 one, lets it go down by 1500 over the next two years then in late 2011 says he’s gonna increase it by another 1000 by the end of 2011, so it’ll technically be mopre than when he came in, but this excludes for the majoirty of the time he was in it was less than before and it also excludes the Reason Ken was going to increase it by 2000 was due to the Olympics,
teh Other thing Boris did was he sadi there’s less (reproted) crime in outer london, I’m gonna take 300 police from 6 outer london boroughs stick it in inner london but i’ll say there’s no police cuts becasue I’m not judging the police per person as Ken was I’m judging it polce per crime,
Fair enough there should be more police in the crime areas, But alot of crime goes un noticed and unreported due to their not being the police to write it up.
One point I haven’t seen discussed much is the likely effect of Osborne’s budget on crime, whatever happens to police front line numbers.
Yet, a big increase in unemployment, in the number of people having their benefits stopped entirely, and in the homeless is going to greatly increase the number of people in real desperation, which at the margin is surely bound to increase the crime level.
The Middle England that voted Tory thinking they were getting the law & order party are going find their houses getting broken into, their kids getting mugged, their cars getting nicked – stuff that thankfully went down quite a lot over the previous 15 years. Policing won’t make a blind bit of difference to that. It’s what you inevitably get when you launch a class war on the poor.
Strategeist, I was homeless in a squat for a year in 1993 and I never mugged anyoen or stole anything, yes I begged which is illegal and took food from bins, Yes lots of people don’t get benefits and end up homeless and the lack of benefits can lead to petty drime l,like running out of a restraunt without paying, but it’s a cop out to blame the unemployed’s status for them commiting crime,
strategist,The middle england that voted tory thinking they were the party of law and order, Boris was open in 2008 he would cut police while Ken would’nt yet Boris was voted to by middle england, and it Labor said that the cuts after teh 2010 election they wouldn’t cut police, yet the Toires said they were gonna cut police at the 2010 elction cuts,but Yes it willserve middle england right if crime rises, But it won’t be a suprise as as they new the tories would cut it,
@ 3 john p reid
How can you claim that unemployment causes crime and then say it’s a cop-out to blame unemployment for crime in the same sentence?
Er, I meant that poverty for those who can;t claim unemployment benefit, its not teh same as those who get dole
Reactions: Twitter, blogs
- paulstpancras
The reality behind Boris Johnson’s police cuts | Liberal Conspiracy http://t.co/29Y5MBV via @libcon
- Valerie Shawcross
http://liberalconspiracy.org/2011/04/07/the-reality-behind-boris-johnsons-police-cuts/ I'd say @greenjennyjones gets it about right again.
- Tom Chance (work)
RT @ValShawcross: http://liberalconspiracy.org/2011/04/07/the-reality-behind-boris-johnsons-police-cuts/ I'd say @greenjennyjones gets it about right again.
- The Home Guard Team « Cbcburke9's Blog
[...] The reality behind Boris Johnson’s police cuts (liberalconspiracy.org) [...]
- weareleeds
The reality behind Boris Johnson’s police cuts http://t.co/wMGwn3F #londonriots
- Gabriel Streicker
Look at this article from February: reality behind Boris Johnson’s police cuts http://t.co/dPz6oj4 via @libcon
- Citizen K
Look at this article from February: reality behind Boris Johnson’s police cuts http://t.co/dPz6oj4 via @libcon
- Gabriel Streicker
Interesting article in the light of #UKRiots http://t.co/dPz6oj4
- Jenny Jones
.@BBCr4today The @mayoroflondon has replaced traffic wardens with police & reversed policy of civilianisation http://t.co/WvOQl1M
- Darren Johnson
The reality of @mayoroflondon police numbers game. Officers replacing parking warden supervisors http://t.co/8YUKihb #police
- Caroline Allen
RT @DarrenJohnsonAM The reality of @mayoroflondon police numbers game. Officers replacing parking warden supervisors http://t.co/LkAFmQF
- Andy S
The reality of @mayoroflondon police numbers game. Officers replacing parking warden supervisors http://t.co/8YUKihb #police
- The Green Party
http://t.co/q3kQ4mX @GreenJennyJones – The Mayor heralding the Met as a special case and muddying the water around the figures is unhelpful
- Darren Johnson
Axing 2,000 Met civilians 'won't hit police patrols' @standardnews http://t.co/7mHeTMaB @greenjennyjones it will http://t.co/phFno5l7
- Caroline Russell
Axing 2,000 Met civilians 'won't hit police patrols' @standardnews http://t.co/7mHeTMaB @greenjennyjones it will http://t.co/phFno5l7
- MICHELLE STATHAM
Axing 2,000 Met civilians 'won't hit police patrols' @standardnews http://t.co/7mHeTMaB @greenjennyjones it will http://t.co/phFno5l7
- Police numbers: claim and counterclaim « transportandpolitics
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