Policing In Some Parts Of UK 'Broken' Due To Funding Cuts - Police Federation Head

Police Federation of England and Wales Chairman John Apter, who was elected in late July, said on Monday that policing in some parts of the country was "broken" due to funding cuts and staffing reduction, which is already doing damage to the public.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th August, 2018) Police Federation of England and Wales Chairman John Apter, who was elected in late July, said on Monday that policing in some parts of the country was "broken" due to funding cuts and staffing reduction, which is already doing damage to the public.

"You can only slice the financial cake so many ways and you have to prioritise The public are already suffering and they are going to suffer more and more," Apter told The Independent, adding that police officers "on the ground" or even the chief constable were not always to blame for "failing the public."

Apter believes that funding cuts are the major reason for the police forces' crisis.

"Im not saying that in the early days of austerity there were not efficiencies to be made, but what we are finding now is that weve been cut so much we start to become inefficient," Apster said.

While, according to Office for National Statistics figures, the UK police forces registered a total of 5.5 million crimes in the period between March 2017 and March 2018, which is 11 percent more compared to last year, the number of personnel employed by the Police Federation stood at its record low in over two decades at the end of March.

In March 2018, the Home Office announced that in 2018-2019, the police system funding would increase by 460 million Pounds ($586.36 million).