Greater Manchester Mayor and PCC welcomes confirmation of police cuts u-turn

Greater Manchester’s Police and Crime Commissioner Tony Lloyd

Greater Manchester’s Mayor and Police and Crime Commissioner Tony Lloyd has welcomed confirmation that policing will not face further cuts in 2016/17.

In the provisional funding settlement the Government confirmed its u-turn on police finances.

Mr Lloyd said: “The police service, Police and Crime Commissioners and local communities have been making the case since 2010 that cuts to policing are unsustainable, and I am pleased that the Government has finally listened.

“We have made a strong and compelling case to Government that the cuts programme was reckless. Had they continued down the road of cuts – as they were planning to – it would have endangered the safety and security of our communities. This is a u-turn, but it is also the right thing to do.

“However, we must not underestimate the scale of the challenge still facing us in Greater Manchester. We have already seen £180m cut from the budget and have lost more than 1,600 police officers – and we still need to find £70m of savings over the next three years. Our partner agencies, such as local councils, still face unacceptable cuts which will endanger public safety.”