PCC: May should apologise over 'misleading' funding statements

In a new report the UK Statistics Authority concluded that Mrs May misled MPs and the public by claiming that the Government was providing an extra £450m in funding to local police forces in 2018-19.

The body's chair, Sir David Norgrove, ruled the claim, which was made at Prime Minister’s Questions last month, was inaccurate.

Labour's West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner, David Jamieson, described the ruling as 'a huge embarrassment' for the Government and urged the Prime Minister to provide more funding for cash-strapped police forces.

Mr Jamieson says WMP has lost more than £140m funding in real terms since 2010.

He has faced criticism from Tory MPs across the region for closing down police stations and spending cash on 'office staff' rather than beat bobbies.

Commenting on the report from the UK Statistics Authority, he said: "This is what I have been saying for a long time. Forces like West Midlands Police are still facing real terms cuts.

"This is a huge embarrassment for the Government and for local MPs like Andrew Mitchell, Julian Knight and Eddie Hughes.

"West Midlands Police has been hit harder than anywhere else in the county. I hope the Government apologises for its misleading statements and uses this as a moment to change course and start funding police forces properly."

The report comes after Labour's shadow police and crime minister, Louise Haigh, complained to the statistics watchdog that there had been a 'flat cash' settlement for police forces that amounted to a cut in direct grants to the police in real terms.

The Home Office said it aimed 'to be as clear as possible' in communicating figures to the public and has 'repeatedly said that around £270m of the up to £450m increase in police funding next year results from increased council tax precept income'.

Mr Jamieson has raised council tax by around 10 per cent in the West Midlands to raise £9.5m