Black Country MP demands Home Secretary intervene over West Midlands Police cuts
An MP from the Black Country has demanded the Home Secretary intervene over cuts to the police force at a meeting in Parliament.
Dudley North MP Ian Austin raised the issue with Theresa May at a Home Affairs Select Committee meeting this week.
Mr Austin said government cuts would result in the loss of 2,500 police officers and that the West Midlands deserved a 'fairer share' of funding.
Mr Austin had presented a letter signed by 15 MPs calling for the cuts to be looked at.
The home secretary acknowledged the issue and said it 'needs to be looked at'.
The West Midlands has the second lowest council tax precept, which is used to fund policing, in the country. This means it relies more on central government funds than other forces.
According to Mr Austin, the system the Government uses to distribute police funding means currently West Midlands Police receives a smaller share than other forces despite higher levels of crime.
Due to this, Mr Austin claims, flat-rate national cuts hit the West Midlands harder, with West Midlands Police set to lose a quarter of its budget.
Mr Austin said: "The home secretary acknowledges that West Midlands police funding is a problem, but she needs to take this much more seriously.
"We all know savings have to be made, but the government has cut spending too quickly and too deeply, and failing to introduce a fairer funding system is costing the West Midlands millions.
"Police officers are losing their jobs, police stations have closed and Dudley Police Station is still at risk.
"Local people want more police on the streets, more offenders brought before court and more criminals put in jail, so I'm fighting for the West Midlands to get a fairer share of police funding.
"While central government provides 86 per cent of the Midlands Police budget, for some forces this is as low as 49 per cent.
"For example, while Surrey Police will see their total income fall by about 12 per cent, West Midlands Police will lose about 22 per cent.
"Given that our crime rates are higher, with more serious threats to the community, this simply isn't fair."
More than 2,500 jobs on the force will be axed in the next four years in a bid to save an extra £100 million, on top of £126m which has already been cut.
Mrs May replied: "I am aware of the various proportions of funding available to the different forces and the extent that forces make funding available from precept varies from force to force.
"I think the question of how police funding is distributed will have to be something the government looks at. I am certain we will look very carefully at that."
