Northumbria police and crime commissioner (PCC) Susan Dungworth is planning a 7.7 per cent hike on the portion of council tax charges across both Tyne and Wear and Northumberland which goes towards the force’s budget.
Announcing her plans on Monday (January 6), the PCC’s office said that not upping the precept would lead to “significant budget challenges” for Northumbria Police – leaving it with “reduced funding of over £5.9m, requiring associated cuts and efficiency savings”.
The above-inflation increase would amount to an extra 78p per month for a Band A property’s bills and a maximum £2.33 in a Band H household.
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Mrs Dungworth, a Labour politician who succeeded Kim McGuinness in the PCC role last May, said: “I have to set the scene here – the budget will be tight and there are difficult choices to be made – raising a precept being one. Sustaining current police levels by slightly increasing the police element of the council tax is what we need to happen if we are going to protect and sustain current policing levels – and we are all keen for that.
“We’ve already welcomed funding news from Government of around £3 million for neighbourhood policing – a real commitment – but it doesn’t cover it all. We also await more special grant detail but, in the meantime, the Chief Constable and I are determined to map out a budget that offers real value for money for the people of Northumbria.
“We will do all we can to protect frontline policing and ultimately protect the public and this does come with a price tag. We can’t expect a new Government to put a decade’s worth of cuts and underfunding right in year – but we eagerly await details of the police reform plans to help deliver efficiencies nationally across the police service – and these are all great steps forward.”
The PCC’s office said the extra revenue generated from the precept rise would also “allow for some investment” in areas including tackling anti-social behaviour (ASB) and online crimes. A public consultation has been launched on the changes, which can be found here.
Mrs Dungworth, a former councillor in Northumberland, added: “I want to work with the Chief Constable to tackle ASB, fraud and online crime and strengthen all departments to help bring more offenders to justice. All of this requires additional funding though. This is why I am asking how much people are willing to pay to be able to help support our region’s efforts to deliver safer streets and stronger communities.”