Commissioner Zoë says ‘Thank you’ to the public for supporting Police and Fire services in North Yorkshire and York.

Following careful consideration of public feedback, Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Zoe Metcalfe has set the budgets for North Yorkshire Police and North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service for 2023/24.

These budgets are part funded through the ‘precept’, which is the policing and fire element of council tax paid for by the public.

Commissioner Zoë presented her precept proposals to today’s Police, Fire and Crime Panel (06 February) who approved the plans unanimously.

• The policing precept will rise by 4.99% in 2023/24 – an average increase of 27p per week for a Band D property.
• The fire and rescue precept will rise by 6.6% in 2023/24 – an average increase of 10p per week for a Band D property.

Commissioner Zoë said:

I know these are increasingly difficult times for families and individuals across North Yorkshire and York, so I have tried to balance the pressures on household finances with the need to continue to ensure we give North Yorkshire Police and North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue the resources to keep us safe and feeling safe.

Without this increase police and fire budgets would have been significantly below inflation and could likely have led to reductions in the level of service delivery – which isn’t what we want for our communities.

I want to say thank you to our local people for completing my precept survey and showing their continued support for both our police and fire and rescue services. We still face significant financial pressures, but I will ensure we engage extensively to ensure we make the right decisions, even though they may be difficult.

Commissioner Zoe continues to call for fairer funding from government, highlighting that Ministers need to do more to recognise the challenges faced by communities as diverse and sparse as North Yorkshire and York.

North Yorkshire Police Precept

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service Precept