Police forces ‘struggle to deliver’ due to funding cuts, report warns

Police forces ‘struggle to deliver’ due to funding cuts

Police forces are struggling to deliver effective services due to funding cuts, a new report from the National Audit Office (NAO) has warned.

The NAO – the government’s spending watchdog – published the in-depth review of policing across England and Wales on Tuesday (11 September).

While crime recorded by the Crime Survey for England and Wales decreased by 36% between 2011 and 2018, at the same time police forces have been facing a recent upsurge in reporting of low volume and high harm crime which are more expensive to investigate, such as sexual offences, and an increased threat of terrorism.

Since 2010, there have been fewer breathalyser tests, motoring fixed penalty notices and convictions for drugs trafficking and possession.

The time it took to charge an offence increased from 14 days for the year ending March 2016, to 18 days for the year ending March 2018.

Furthermore, the proportion of crimes which resulted in a charge or summons fell by six percentage points, from 15% in March 2015 to 9% in March 2018.

The report accused the Home Office of a “light touch” approach, suggesting it does not know “if the police system is financially sustainable.”

The total police budget for 2018-19 is £12.3bn, but overall funding to forces – made up of central government grants and council tax – has fallen by 19% in real terms since 2010-11, according to the watchdog.

The main way police forces have managed financial pressures is by reducing their workforce size, with a 15% drop in police officers in March 2018.

There was also a 20% reduction in the reserves set aside by police forces for planned projects or exceptional events between March 2015 and March 2017, following a 49% increase between March 2011 and March 2015.

Amyas Morse, the head of the NAO, said: “The financial sustainability of police forces and their ability to deliver effective services is reliant on the Home Office understanding national and local demands and allocating funds fairly.

“There are signs that forces are already experiencing financial strain and struggling to deliver effective services to the public. If the Home Office does not understand what is going on it will not be able to direct resources to where they are needed, with the risk that the situation could get worse.”