Job cuts at West Midlands and Northumbria

Northumbria Police and West Midlands Police have announced job cuts in response to reductions in central government funding.

Northumbria Police said it will lose £34 million from central government funding and will have to cut back on 450 posts.

The force revealed the figures on November 22 and said that it is identifying ways to improve services, cut bureaucracy, reduce duplication and deliver efficiencies.

Staff were told that more than 400 posts will go, but police officers will be unaffected. A recruitment freeze is in place and the force also aims to reduce the workforce as much as possible through natural turnover.

Temporary Chief Constable Sue Sim said: “I am absolutely committed to maintaining frontline policing and the services we offer to our communities. I will protect as far as possible the number of neighbourhood and response officers who work direct with the public.”

West Midlands Police is to lose around 2,200 police officer and staff positions as part of its savings plan, which is higher than initial estimates.

Chief Constable Chris Sims said that based on current estimates, the force will lose around 15 per cent of its workforce; previously it was thought the losses would amount to around 2,000, but the exact figure will not be known until next month when police forces across the country will be told how much they will have to save.

Government claims about protecting the front line have been criticised by the Shadow Home Secretary, particularly after Greater Manchester Police announced it is to cut around a quarter of its force over the same period.

Ed Balls said: “This is now the second police force in the country since the spending review to confirm the impact of the Government’s cuts on local policing. David Cameron and Theresa May’s claims that police funding can be cut by 20 per cent without hitting frontline policing is becoming increasingly laughable.”