Staffordshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner confirmed today he is to ask local people to pay more towards policing across the county.
Matthew Ellis is one of only three PCCs nationally to freeze the policing part of council tax bills for four of the five years, since being elected in November 2012.
From April he is seeking to increase average bills for policing by 95p a month (Band D). This equates to an average annual rise of 1.4% since 2013.
‘My strong instinct has always been not to raise taxes. However, crime is evolving and becoming more complex,’ said Mr Ellis.
‘The internet, technology and societal change have all affected the way harm can be inflicted on victims. It’s made the job of investigating, and the job of policing generally, more time consuming and more costly.
‘Despite that, Staffordshire Police has coped well and because money has been spent more effectively over recent years, neighbourhood policing numbers have remained broadly the same in Staffordshire since 2013.
‘But that increasing demand and evolving criminality has meant the most local day-to-day reassurance policing in the heart of communities has suffered.
‘My proposed increase of £11.40 a year will allow Staffordshire’s Chief Constable to invest in critical areas of policing, provides continued investment in modern technology and crucially, a much-needed boost to policing at the most local community level by increasing officer numbers.’
Staffordshire’s new Chief Constable Gareth Morgan, who was appointed by Mr Ellis six months ago, is in the midst of re-organising the force to provide extra capacity and capabilities, including more consistent and effective response policing, in addition to the extra investment in community policing.
The Police and Crime Panel for Staffordshire will examine and question the PCC on his proposals next Monday, January 29. It can be viewed live at https://staffordshire.public-i.tv/core/portal/home
Examples – on-going cost pressures in last three years
- £3.5 million rising annually – most investigations now need forensic exam of tech (mobiles, tablets, PCs etc)
- Additional investment in armed response capability for Staffordshire (confidential)
- Significant dedicated team – child exploitation online (confidential)
- £100 million 2016 to 2023 core police ICT infrastructure replacement, including mobile devices, bodycams etc
- Police/staff pay increase part-funded by government part-funded by PCC
Note to editors
Please find a selection of images on our website to accompany this story – https://www.staffordshire-pcc.gov.uk/photos/media-centre/
