THE LEADER of Harlow Labour has called for policing in Harlow and the rest of the country to be “properly funded”.

Councillor Chris Vince said:

OVER the past decades we have seen unprecedented cuts to policing by this Conservative government.  This has led to a lack of policing in our communities.  The PFCC for Essex may claim he is recruiting more police officers now but 12 years of cuts have already caused huge issues in our communities.  

Below are the policies that were agreed at the Labour conference on policing.

• Neighbourhood policing pledge   – Labour would restore neighbourhood policing by hiring 10,000 new neighbourhood police officers, PCSOs, and specials directly for neighbourhood roles and public patrols.  This would equate to an average of 15-20 new police on the beat for every local constituency in England and Wales. 
• Labour will work with the new network of mental health professionals and neighbourhood hubs to triage demand away from frontline policing, freeing up officer time to investigate crime.
• Labour will introduce reforms to raise standards and confidence. Labour will raise standards in policing, including overhauling training, misconduct and vetting procedures and including compulsory anti racism training and compulsory training on violence against women and girls.

Having spoken to police across Essex it’s clear that lack of policing in communities has had its effect. However, what really struck me was the other issues that they are being forced to pick up above and beyond their usual duties.  Cuts to things like mental health provision and to our NHS mean that they are having to do more and more.  Although the PFCC may brag about new office recruits what he’s not talking about is the cuts to back room policing staff which means officers themselves have less time on the streets and more time in a back office.  He’s also not talking about the lack of resources they have.  Officers being forced to share squad cars is not uncommon.

Of course, policing has to be paid for but the alternative is alarming.  Do we really want those who can afford it going down the line of hiring private security and the rest of us going without or do we want all our communities to be safe and inclusive places.

However, policing shouldn’t be just paid for by the PFCC increasing his proportion of the council tax bill, it should be properly funded by national government with a progressive taxation system that means those who can afford to pay a little more.