Leading North East Labour figures have slammed the Government for 13 years of austerity that has left Northumbria Police facing a perilous financial situation.
Police and Crime Commissioner Kim McGuiness was among those to condemn the way the force had been funded since 2010 at a meeting of the police and crime panel on Tuesday.
Members felt that Northumbria was being treated unfairly with officer numbers yet to reach 2010 levels - while some forces now boast record levels.
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The problem has now worsened, with the force facing an inflation crisis to the tune of £12 million. Speaking at the meeting, Ms McGuinness called for more support to deal with ever growing demand on the police. She said: "We simply don't have the resources to deal with increasing demand - and that was before the latest financial pressures. Calls to 999 are rising all the time and are at record levels.
"We have lost 11,000 officers and £148 million out of our budget since 2010. We are appealling to the home secretary all the time to give us back our cops.
"The financial pressures are really, really severe. We need a fully resourced, fully funded force. It's really poor that we've not been returned to 2010 levels. We have had to taken millions out of this force while forces around the country that have never had more cops.
"I do sometimes feel we get out of bed to protect people from Government cuts - from Tory cuts - and I don't like that.
Ms McGuinness also addressed the news that the force was being forced to cut more than 100 PCSO jobs, as it could not afford to keep the "highly valued" community support officers and proceed with plans to put 134 new officers on the front-line.
She continued: "There will be no redundancies - but in order to fill that neighbourhood gap 134 new officers will be deployed. These aren't decisions we want to make. Ideally, we would want to keep both. It is just another example of how this lack of Government funding and the constant chipping away after 13 years of austerity. It's not an ideal situation.
"These 134 new officers - hopefully with more to follow - is the best we can do."
Kevin Laing, Northumbria's chief finance officer, explained that the force would have to dip into its cash reserves to cover the shortfalls as efficiencies were put into place. Ms McGuinness added; "It's a really difficult set of circumstances. We've had to use reserves this year.
"It is incredibly difficult, but we are in a safe position. These ae the difficult decisions we have to make."
Coun James Foreman of South Tyneside Council welcomed the new officers, but warned the force was still short on 2010 levels. He said: "It's lovely to hear we're going to get 134 new officers. We're still 400-and-odd short (on 2010 levels).
"Should we really be celebrating? Or should we be saying what is this government doing to the residents of the North East? I think all councillors feel the same within that we're being short-shifted by this Government.
"While I welcome the new officers, I'm still angry we're going to be 400 short."
Coun Angela Douglas of Gateshead Council added: "Ultimately we need more funding. The use of reserves is a big concern. This Government seems to delight in taking money from more deprived areas and pit it into richer areas - they seem to delight in that."
The panel's lone Conservative councillor, Coun Gordon Stewart, argued the recruitment of 134 new officers was "good news" and said it was an "opportunity to have a modern, forward thinking police force."
And Ms McGuinness was keen to point out that, despite the financial challenges, Northumbria Police was still performing well.
She said: "Northumbria does a really good job of fighting crime. We see how dedicated the force are, not just to keeping us safe but pro-actively targeting criminals and fighting crime. I have been on a couple of raids myself recently and the outcome is people taken off the streets, drugs seized, money seized and put back into the community to prevent crime.
"We're seeing consistent falls in anti-social behaviour for the first time since Covid. It's important to thank local authorities for their work alongside police and my office. What we do know is that we can't escape the pressure facing the force."
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