The government’s spending review is a "huge blow" for police and will leave forces struggling to recruit 13,000 neighbourhood officers promised by Labour, police leaders have warned.
The chairman of the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) said Rachel Reeves’ plans for an average 2.3 per cent rise in police spending per year, the equivalent of £2bn, will cover little more than inflationary pay increases for existing officers and staff.
Meanwhile a projected £1.2 billion black hole in police funding will continue to grow, chief constable Gavin Stephens warned.
He insisted policing is still focussed on meeting the government’s ambitious manifesto pledges to halve violence against and women and girls and knife crime in a decade but admitted the tough funding settlement will make progress “slower”.
Chief constable Paul Sanford, chair of the NPCC’s finance committee, warned it will be “incredibly difficult” to meet the government’s pledge to recruit 13,000 additional neighbourhood officers, PCSOs and special constables.
Home secretary Yvette Cooper promised every community a named, contactable officer as part of her Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee last November. So far around 3,000 officers have been recruited.
CC Sanford added: “We will be working incredibly hard with the Home Office to complete as much of the recruitment that is required as is possible in the years ahead, but based on this settlement, that does look a real challenge for us.”
He also warned forces have increasingly relied on borrowing money to balance the books and the cost of debt is expected to go up by 49 per cent in the next three years.
There is also no additional funding to help police to manage more offenders expected to serve their sentences in the community under plans laid out by the Ministry of Justice, following David Gauke’s sentencing review.
President of the Police Superintendents’ Association (PSA), Nick Smart, described the spending review as a “huge blow” to policing and claimed the fallout “has the potential to put public safety at risk”.
He said: “Many of the government’s election pledges centred around a commitment to ‘safer streets’, promising the public that it would meet ambitious targets such as halving knife crime.
“Yet the lack of investment announced today means we will continue to struggle to deliver the basics, to maintain officer numbers, cover inflationary costs, cover pay awards, and function as we are, let alone move forward on new public safety and transformation initiatives.
“Leaders representing every part of the police workforce have come out in unison, stating the stark truth of policing today, stressing that it will be impossible to deliver on the pledges made by government without increased, long-term investment, and once again, we are ignored.”
Considering the funding challenges, he said “conversations must be had” around where police can begin to say “no” when other services turn to them for support, adding: “We cannot continue to be society’s sticking plaster when other services falter.”
Acting national chairwoman of the Police Federation, Tiff Lynch, accused the chancellor of failing to listen to police officers or the home secretary in the lead up to the review.
She said: "This spending review should have been a turning point after 15 years of austerity that has left policing, and police officers, broken.
"Instead, the cuts will continue and it's the public who will pay the price.
"As rank-and-file officers kit up for night duty this evening, they'll do so knowing exactly where they stand in the Government's priorities.
"It is beyond insulting for cabinet ministers to call on police to 'do their bit' when officers are overworked, underpaid, and under threat like never before.
"They are facing blades and bricks, managing mental health crises while battling to protect their own, and carrying the weight of trauma and financial stress home with them every day."
The union, which represents 145,000 rank and file officers, claims police pay has fallen by more than 20 per cent in real terms since 2010, while the number of crimes allocated to each officer has risen by a third.
Roger Hirst and Joy Allen, joint leads for funding for the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, agreed the settlement is not enough to meet government targets to reduce crime.
Mr Hirst warned some areas forces will have to rely on council tax hikes to maintain officer numbers, while Ms Allen said a lack of capital investment will leave many forces struggling with outdated digital infrastructure as well as ageing buildings and vehicle fleets.
Ms Reeves has said she recognises "that not everyone has been able to get exactly what they want" from Wednesday's spending review, but insisted forces can meet the government’s manifesto commitments.
Asked about concerns raised by policing figures, she told the BBC: "I recognise that not everyone has been able to get exactly what they want in this spending review."
She added: "We're not able to do everything that everyone would want, but real-terms spending power increases for the police of 2.3 per cent a year, above inflation, enabling us to deliver on the commitments we made in our manifesto."
