A dedicated police commissioner has asked for extra funding to reach the target of recruiting thousands of new officers in 2021.
Police and Crime Commissioner Paddy Tipping spoke at the Nottinghamshire Crime and Police Panel held on 4th February.
Nottinghamshire Police have been applauded as the counties crime rate has dropped by 22%.
Commissioner Tipping said: “If you want crime to go down, you need officers on the ground.”
To be able to supply these extra jobs the commissioner has proposed a budget increase which would come from the publics tax payments.
He said: “In the city of Nottingham, for example, 80% of properties are either band A or band B.
“For a band A property the increase is just under £10. For a band B the proposition is that the increase should be £11.62.”
“So what do we get for that? Well one of the things that the panel talked to me about and certainly what the general public talked to me about is more police officers.”
“Police numbers are going up and I’m very keen to work with partners and the government to make that happen.”
The proposition was met with a vote which concluded in a 10:3 decision.
Out of the three opposing votes, the main concern was the complications for those who are already struggling financially as a result of the pandemic.
Councillor Helen-Ann Smith, from Ashfield District Council, said: “people are struggling, people are out of work.
“Its a time we need to be pulling together not increasing everything.”
In response the commissioner said: “its the difficult balance we’ve had to make.”
“the overwhelming feeling [from the focus groups] was if your’e spending the money wisely, if we’re getting a return, if we’re getting more officers on the ground and if we’re reducing crime then we’re in favour of it.”
While debates were made for and against the recommendation, the vote resulted in its favour.
