PLANS to increase spending on security at North Yorkshire Police headquarters could be scrapped or scaled back due to the national cuts.

The force is reviewing its plans to spend £200,000 ensuring its base at Newby Wiske, near Northallerton, is kept safe.

The plans are to be re-examined “in light of current and likely future budget constraints”, according to a report by the North Yorkshire Police Authority.

A spokesman for the authority said that in the light of the current economic climate spending, the security measures were now not deemed a “priority”. As the region’s police chiefs battle to make £6.2 million of savings this year, the force is also taking a fresh look at how much it spends on vehicles.

The report says that police chiefs have reviewed the money they needed to spend on their fleet because of the financial restraints and they have realised they can spend £500,000 less than originally envisioned, particularly in specialist units.

On ongoing policing cuts, North Yorkshire’s chief constable Grahame Maxwell said: “Modern policing is incredibly complex with officers from our 44 forces responding to a huge range of incidents every day.

“Some of this work is very visible to local communities, while other elements of this important work are not.

“Both aspects are absolutely critical to keeping the public safe.

“Chiefs now face some tough choices in times of constrained funding and while the full extent of cuts will not become clear until the autumn, we are planning for a range of scenarios.”

As The Press previously reported, a force-wide recruitment freeze has been implemented.

In addition, officers will be unable to apply for promotion until next April.

A review of shift arrangements has also been launched and the use of agency workers is being scaled back.