On the 17 December 2015, the Policing Minister Mike Penning made a statement on the provisional police funding formula for 2016/17. Government grants to the 43 territorial police forces in England and Wales have been cut by more than £200 million – equivalent to a 4.1 per cent reduction over the previous year once inflation is taken into account.
The grants for England and Wales:
- £7,630,719,732 for 2015/16
- £7,421,588,629 for 2016/17
Commenting on the settlement for North Yorkshire Police, the Chief Constable, Dave Jones, said:
We have been considering the implications of the announcement today, and it is good news for North Yorkshire Police.
We still need to deliver our savings and efficiency plans, but if we do, it will mean that we are in a healthy financial position in 2016/17. I have pledged that in 2016 we will focus even more strongly on protecting the most vulnerable people in our communities, and – with careful planning – today’s financial settlement could provide us with some additional resources to do that.
As a result of today’s statement, we are in a better position than we had thought we would be, but it’s important to keep a long-term view. The settlement is dependent on the outcome of the police precept, and it is based on a provisional calculation for one year only. We still do not know how we might be affected by the final Police Funding Formula, which will come into play in April 2017 and beyond. We cannot loosen the purse-strings just yet.
There is a positive mood across North Yorkshire Police today, but we are not getting carried away. We will continue to be prudent with our finances, and to focus on providing the service that the public expects as efficiently as we can.
Julia Mulligan, Police and Crime Commissioner for North Yorkshire, said:
First indications from the Government are that funding for North Yorkshire Police next year is only a little lower than we received this year. This is good news and a much better deal than was expected.
There is however a lot of detail to be assessed before we know the full picture. And of course revisions to the funding formula, the method by which the government carves up the total policing budget, remain unclear.
The news today also assumes that I will put up the policing element of council tax by approximately 2%. I will be consulting the public on this shortly, especially given that we need to protect frontline services as well as find additional resources to tackle important issues such as domestic abuse and the exploitation of children.
But all in all, I am pleased the Government has put it’s money where it’s mouth is by giving us a fair settlement. North Yorkshire Police is hugely valued by the public and I’d like to say thank you to them, especially at this time of year when we enjoy ourselves and the police work round the clock to keep us safe.
