Peterborough and Cambridegshire residents support council tax rise to pay for police

Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Police and Crime Commissioner held a survey asking for residents’ views on a council tax rise.

More than 1,560 people completed the survey with 64% agreeing that an increase of 83p per month (for people living in Band D properties), was value for money.

The increase to the policing part of council tax, supported by the county’s Police and Crime Panel on 2nd February, means that the county will have more officers than ever before - 1,714 by March 2023.

The increase, together with £4.8m from government, means that the Chief Constable will be able to recruit and train an additional 82 officers over 2022-23 and improve the policing service local people receive across the following areas:

More drug specialists

More investigators to respond to the growing threat of cybercrime

More resources to catch those who commit violence against women and girls

More officers to seek out those who harm our communities through county lines and serious and organised crime

More support to enable police investigators to better analyse the growing complexities of digital devices

Mr Preston said: “Raising the policing part of people’s council tax is not something I wanted to do.

“There has been a huge increase in police officer numbers since 2018/19, (an extra 289 by March 2023). However, while these officers are welcome, this increase means that those functions supporting officers to carry out their jobs effectively and ethically, such as vetting, training, IT and police vehicles, also need to increase at the same time.

“Our costs are increasing too. I do believe this increase is necessary to deliver what people want to see – more police officers, cutting crime and keeping our communities safe.

“I would like to thank Panel members for supporting this increase and everyone who took the time to complete my survey.”

Chief Constable, Nick Dean said: “This additional funding will provide critical resources to allow us to tackle priority crime areas such as drugs, cyber crime and violence against women and girls. It will allow us to support and sustain the additional officers that we recruited and will recruit over the next 12 months,”

“The force remains focused on ensuring value for money for the people of Cambridgeshire by tackling the issues that remain a concern to the public and protecting the most vulnerable people in our communities by targeting criminals and bringing them to justice,” he added.

The survey also provided the public with an opportunity to provide their views on what they see as policing priorities in their local areas and outlined the cost pressures facing the Constabulary.

All views received through the survey will be shared with the force and wider community safety partners to help shape local policing.