Police to receive more than £15 billion to fight crime and recruit more officers

image_pdfimage_print

Policing will receive up to £15.8 billion to build back safer and cut crime, the government will announce today.

The 2021 to 2022 funding package will include over £400 million to recruit 20,000 extra officers by 2023, building on the success of the first year of the recruitment campaign – which has already delivered almost 6,000 additional police officers.

Alongside getting more officers out on the street, the funding settlement will enable policing to tackle serious violence and increase the number of specialist officers tackling terrorism and serious organised crime, including child sexual abuse and drug trafficking.

The 2021 to 2022 funding package means an increase of up to £636 million on last year, should police and crime commissioners (PCCs) take full advantage of police precept flexibility.

Home Secretary Priti Patel said:

We have asked more of the police than ever before during the coronavirus pandemic – the British people and I are extremely grateful for their dedication.

I am absolutely committed to giving the police the resources they need – this funding package delivers on that.

It will allow us to continue to put more police on the streets, and reduce crime as we build back safer from the pandemic.

Funding for Counter-Terrorism policing will total up to £914 million, including money for armed policing and more officers. In addition, Counter-Terrorism policing will receive £32 million to establish a new Counter-Terrorism Operations Centre to keep the country safe from a range of threats.

The government also recognises that, during the coronavirus pandemic, huge demands have been made of the police.

That is why it has provided additional support throughout, including £30 million of surge funding to help forces step up COVID-19 enforcement activities in 2020 to 2021, and why it reimbursed all additional personal protective equipment (PPE) purchased between March and July.

Huge demands have also been made on the public, the vast majority of whom have been following the rules to help keep everyone safe. Just as police will continue to enforce the regulations, the public should continue to do their bit to stop the spread of the virus.

The publication of the provisional funding settlement opens a period of consultation. The final police funding settlement will be debated in Parliament ahead of the new financial year.

Change in total direct resource force funding compared to 2021/22 in £ millions [1]

Police Force Area 2020/21 [2] 2021/22 Maximum cash increase
Avon & Somerset 326.2 344 17.8
Bedfordshire 122.4 129.3 6.9
Cambridgeshire 156 164.5 8.5
Cheshire 207.9 219.6 11.8
City of London 66.9 71.1 4.2
Cleveland 143.3 150.6 7.2
Cumbria 117.7 123.7 6
Derbyshire 193.7 204.3 10.5
Devon & Cornwall 338.1 356.8 18.7
Dorset 144.2 151.9 7.7
Durham 133.2 140.4 7.2
Dyfed-Powys 115.4 122.2 6.8
Essex 319.9 338.7 18.8
Gloucestershire 126.8 133.4 6.6
Greater London Authority 2936.6 3075.6 138.9
Greater Manchester 642.4 677.5 35.1
Gwent 142 150.1 8.1
Hampshire 366.1 387 21
Hertfordshire 221.1 234.1 13
Humberside 200.6 211.2 10.7
Kent 338.2 357.7 19.5
Lancashire 308.5 325.5 17
Leicestershire 203.8 214.7 11
Lincolnshire 131.5 138.4 6.8
Merseyside 359.3 378.6 19.3
Norfolk 177 186 9
North Wales 167 176.4 9.4
North Yorkshire 166.1 174.5 8.4
Northamptonshire 146.1 153.7 7.6
Northumbria 306.8 325.4 18.6
Nottinghamshire 224.6 236.7 12.1
South Wales 315.5 333.5 18
South Yorkshire 281.8 297.5 15.7
Staffordshire 210.9 222.3 11.4
Suffolk 134.9 142.4 7.4
Surrey 249.2 262 12.7
Sussex 309.6 327.7 18.1
Thames Valley 456.3 482.4 26.1
Warwickshire 109.7 115.7 5.9
West Mercia 236.3 249.3 13
West Midlands 619.7 655.6 35.9
West Yorkshire 484.5 511.9 27.3
Wiltshire 127.6 134.9 7.3
Total England & Wales 13085.7 13788.7 703

[1] Total resource funding consists of core grant funding, National and International Capital City (NICC) grants, Legacy Council Tax grants, Precept grant, Pensions grant, police precept and ringfenced grant (for £100 million). Precept figures use actual precept figures for 2020/21, assume that PCCs in England and Wales increase their precept Band D level by £15, and Office of Budget Responsibility forecast tax base increases. 

[2] Funding in 2020/21 does not include any additional in-year support provided for Covid-19 and assumes all forces maximised their ringfenced grant allocation. Figures may not sum due to rounding.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.