13 July 2020
Peter Aldous urges review of police funding formula for Suffolk

Peter Aldous seeks confirmation from the Government that the review of the police grant funding formula is still going ahead as Suffolk is one of the lowest funded forced from central Government.

Peter Aldous (Waveney) (Con)

What steps her Department is taking to increase police funding. [904597]

The Minister for Crime and Policing (Kit Malthouse)

The Government are now spending over £15 billion on policing—an increase of £1 billion on last year, with £700 million being allocated to police and crime commissioners to recruit 6,000 additional officers by the end of March 2021. While there is no direct connection between police numbers and crime, this will give them the capacity to be much more agile in the face of changing crime.

Peter Aldous

Suffolk constabulary, one of the lowest funded forces from central Government, has made significant efficiency savings and the council tax has increased by over 25% in three years. Can my hon. Friend the Minister confirm that the review of the grant funding formula is still going ahead in the next few months, as this is vital to the future of policing in Suffolk?

Kit Malthouse

My hon. Friend is a doughty champion for his constituency and his county, and I understand his impatience and his desire to battle for their financial interests, as I did as a Back Bencher for Hampshire. Both the Home Secretary and I have said in public in the past that the funding formula, while it is the only formula we have at the moment, is a bit old-fashioned and probably needs to be looked at, and as part of our vision for policing in the future, no doubt we will get to it in time.

Hansard