New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been challenged to reverse austerity and supply Northumbria Police with the funds needed to tackle rising crime levels.
Kim McGuinness , Police and Crime Commissioner for the force, has written to the country's new leader demanding the introduction of a new police funding formula.
Northumbria Police has seen more than 31% of its budget cut since 2010, with the force now deploying 1,000 fewer officers as a result.
Commissioner McGuinness took office on Monday and has already outlined priorities including cyber crime and hate crime, and the Newcastle City Labour Councillor has promised to be the “people’s commissioner.”
The 34-year-old, the youngest Police and Crime Commissioner in the country, penned an open letter to the new Prime Minister on Thursday calling for greater resources to put more officers on patrol.
She said: “Austerity has hit our communities and it has hit our police force and today I have told the prime minister that enough is enough.
"My message is clear, we need the funding not just to reverse police cuts but also to allow us to take a bold new public health approach to tackle the causes of crime, an approach which has been seen to work so successfully elsewhere.”
The open letter cites how residents from Berwick to Sunderland have sent a message "loud and clear" for Northumbria Police to receive greater funding.
Commissioner McGuinness insists the force "stretches every penny out of every pound" on innovative ideas to cut costs while delivering effective policing.
The letter reads: "Let us have an open and transparent funding process, with no top slicing of funds, no further cuts and most of all a funding settlement that recognises the unique rural, coastal and urban communities of Northumbria.
"If you are serious about delivering change, make ending austerity your number one priority, strengthen our public services and give our communities the chance to once again thrive in a safe environment."
Commissioner McGuinness finished: “The ball is firmly in the new Prime Minister’s court. He needs to get serious about backing our police.
"Residents across the force area have made clear they want to see crime come down.
"The PM must show he is prepared to stand by them and our police.”
