£314m police budget agreed (From Hampshire Chronicle)

£314m police budget agreed

9:44am Tuesday 23rd February 2010 in

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HAMPSHIRE police chiefs have unanimously agreed a £314m budget designed to protect the force against future public funding cuts.

The £9m budget hike will mean council tax payers having to find an extra £4.14 a year, taking the bill for an average Band D property to £146.25.

Members of Hampshire Police Authority unanimously approved the spending proposals at a meeting on Tuesday.

Alex Marshall, chief constable of Hampshire Police, said the budget was put together with an eye on expected budget cuts after the election.

“I remain concerned about future funding for police staffing, police community support officers and officers,” he said.

“But of course I don’t know what’s going to come from the election or the budget that follows it.

“I think the proposals recognise the difficulty local people have been through, but it gives us some protection to the budget for future years.”

The need to replace 4,500 police body armour sets and undertake counter terrorism training were among the reasons for the budget hike.

But the authority said it found £6m in savings — including a £2.3m underspend from the current financial year — to prevent cuts to frontline policing.

What do you think? Do the police offer value for money? Leave your comments below.