‘OUTDATED and unfair’ is how the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) has branded the current police funding model.
Simon Foster made the comment after His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Constabulary published the State of Policing: The Annual Assessment of Policing in England and Wales.
The HMIC said the way the funding is distributed still needs to change because it is outdated and unfair – which the PCC agrees with.
Mr Foster said: “The chief inspector has said the national funding formula is ‘outdated and unfair’. I agree.
“The consequence for the West Midlands, is that we still have nearly 700 fewer police officers than we did in 2010 and a funding formula that disproportionately disadvantages the region, in the sum of about £40million a year. This is despite rising demand and increasing complexity in the nature of crime.
“Here in the West Midlands, we have been short changed for far too long. I will continue to call on the government to right this wrong.
“We need a fair funding model, that reflects the pressures on policing in the West Midlands. The existing formula is unfit for purpose. It fails to take into account the scale of demand, from serious organised crime to safeguarding vulnerable people.
“This is not about more money. It is about ensuring a fairer allocation of existing funding, to keep our people, families, businesses and communities safe and secure.”
