Government 'caught red handed' over counter-terrorism funding
The Chancellor has been accused of exaggerating an increase in funding for counter-terrorism policing, after a leaked letter said the year-on-year rise was nearly £100 million less than he announced.
In his Budget speech, Philip Hammond said the Government had committed to spend 30 per cent a year more on counter terrorism from 2015, including an additional £160m in 2019-20.
But a leaked letter from a senior official from the Office for Security and Counter Terrorism, which is part of the Home Office, said next year’s extra funding only amounted to just £59m.
West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner David Jamieson is one of a number of police bosses to have responded angrily to the letter, saying the Government had been 'caught red-handed' overstating the funding.
The letter said: “It represents a £59m year-on-year increase in CT police funding.”
Mr Jamieson, who chairs the board that oversees strategic counter terrorism policing across the country, said: "I hear on a regular basis from some of the country’s most senior officers about the huge threats we face.
"I welcomed the announced counter terrorism funding in the Budget, but it has all un-ravelled very quickly.
"The Government has been caught red-handed overstating the funding they are putting in.
"What is more disappointing though, is the failure to support local forces who are absolutely essential in the fight against terrorism.
"The Budget did not guarantee a single extra penny for forces like West Midlands Police. We need £17 million just to stand still and a further £25.2 million to increase officer numbers by 500 and make a real difference to crime fighting."
Staffordshire Police Chief Constable Gareth Morgan tweeted his frustration, saying he 'welcomed' the extra £160m on Monday, but that just a few days later "...all is not how it seemed. Again."
Government officials have confirmed that the letter was genuine – while Treasury officials said the chancellor was correct to use the £160m figure when he addressed MPs in the Commons.
Home Secretary Sajid Javid addressed a conference of police chiefs on Wednesday and stated 'the increase in funding for counter-terrorism policing for 2019-20, an increase of £160m'.
A spokesperson for the Treasury said Mr Hammond had been accurate about the amount of money he had announced in his Budget speech: “£160m of additional funding is entirely the correct way to describe the counter-terrorism budget announcement,” the spokesperson said.
The Treasury said the £160m figure was correct because it was the difference between the annual amount given in the 2015 spending review settlement (£656m) and the funding granted to counter-terrorism policing for 2019/20 (£816m).
The Government has been under pressure to increase police funding following years of cuts to force budgets, which have seen officer numbers reduced by more than 20,000 across the country.
