Police budget cut kicked out (From York Press)

Police budget cut kicked out

11:21am Friday 7th December 2007

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MPs today hailed a "great victory" for The Press's Fund Our Force campaign, after Home Secretary Jacqui Smith revealed that North Yorkshire Police had been saved from a massive cut in funding.

The campaign was launched after Chief Constable Grahame Maxwell said he feared a £10 million cut in the force's grant from the Government, because of proposed changes in the funding formula.

He warned that such a cut would have "devastating" consequences for front-line policing.

But the Home Secretary said yesterday that the formula would not be changing, and the force would receive a 2.5 per cent increase in the base grant in 2008/09 to £74,797,000, compared to this year's grant of £72,973,000.

The news was greeted with jubilation by York MP Hugh Bayley, who presented The Press's Fund Our Force dossier - including a petition signed by 1,350 people - to the minister in October.

He said: "This is a great victory for The Press campaign - and a victory for democracy. The Home Secretary listened to the arguments against the change in the funding formula.

"She took notice of the petition, to my representations and representations from other rural areas. The arguments were made to retain rural police funding, backed up by the petition you collected.

"The force has not got a £10 million cut in funding, as had been feared. It has got a 2.5 per cent increase in funding for the next three years."

Selby MP John Grogan said: "This is a tremendous victory for The Press's campaign, which was absolutely crucial in bringing home to ministers the folly of changing the formula." He said the force now had financial stability for the next three years.

North Yorkshire Police Authority chairwoman Jane Kenyon gave the announcement a cautious welcome. She said: "This is better news than we expected."

She thanked The Press for supporting the authority's case for the Government to think again about changes to the formula.

The changes, which were put out to public consultation in the autumn, would have benefited urban forces with high crime at the expense of rural forces with lower crime levels, leading to claims that North Yorkshire would have been penalised for its success in bringing down crime.

Jane Kenyon warned that the force still needed to make expenditure reductions of £5 million next year to stay within its anticipated income, based on a 3 per cent increase in council tax. "The Chief Constable is managing that process, without diminishing front line policing, and will present his plans to the Authority next week," she said.

But there were "considerable expenditure challenges," for example through the expansion of neighbourhood policing, which was the public's priority area for development.

"Nevertheless, this settlement will give us some breathing room to regroup, to work towards reshaping the service further and to secure even greater value for money in order to provide the resources for further investment in the future."

How the funding saga unfolded

September 25: The Press exclusively reveals how the force could face a £10 million cut in Government grant because of proposed changes to funding formula.

September 27: The newspaper launches Fund Our Force campaign, calling on the Home Secretary to ensure the force retains adequate funding to fight crime.

September 28: Police Federation claims any cuts would have "catastrophic consequences".

October 4: City of York councillors throw their support behind the campaign.

October 5: The Chief Constable, writing exclusively in The Press, warns that the cut would severely impact on the force's ability to deliver excellent community policing and continually drive down crime.

October 12: Press petition taken to Westminster.

October 25: York MP Hugh Bayley hands dossier to Home Secretary Jacqui Smith.

November 10: Home Secretary tells him that cuts will not be "anything like" £10 million, but does not reveal final figure.

December 6: Home Secretary reveals that funding formula will not be changed, and force will get 2.5 per cent grant rise.

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