Officers may not be returned to the streets after all!

After only six days Devon and Cornwall Police have said that their promise to return 200 police officers to the streets may not go ahead after all.

Devon and Cornwall Chief Constable, Stephen Otter said that if officers were not returned to the beat as promised, then the Home Office would be to blame, because of proposed funding changes. Speaking to BBC news, Mr Otter said:

“I need to say first of all that I'm not sure we may lose that money, but it will have a major impact on the work that we're doing.

We are putting more officers out on the streets that are more visible and more engaging in local communities, which is, ironically, at the heart of the Flanagan report.”

The Flanagan Report has been compiled by HM Inspector of Constabulary Sir Ronnie Flanagan and could cause, according to Otter, a reduction of funds for rural area policing. If this is the case, then Cornwall will no doubt be affected.

Last Friday Devon and Cornwall police, in justification of an increase in their share of the Council Tax by almost 8%, said that the extra money would be used to divert 200 officers from their desk jobs back to the streets. If the 200 promised police officers do not materialise, I wonder if the Council Tax rise will be less?

Source: BBC News