Meon Valley MP Flick Drummond has urged Home Secretary Suella Braverman to look at why Hampshire and Isle of Wight police is one of the lowest funded by the government.

Speaking in Parliament this week, Mrs Drummond asked Mrs Braverman: “Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary is one of the lowest-funded police forces by central Government.

“Can my right honourable and learned friend confirm that this historically unfair funding settlement will be looked at, and that the people of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight can look forward to the same levels of funding as similar areas?"

The Home Secretary replied the government would be consulting ‘very shortly’ on police funding formulas.

For many years, a formula has been used to apply weighting to the calculation of funding for all police forces by the government.

Mrs Drummond has been arguing since 2015 that the process needs reform as Hampshire and the island have had security and organised crime pressures that the funding formula does not recognise.

These include two ports, Southampton Airport, Fawley, a large motorway network and rural areas that have higher crime than the national average.

The independent HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Rescue Services has calculated that Hampshire is penalized under the current formula, and each year receives 10% less than it should from the central government. This means the Hampshire and Isle of Wight force receives £426m, a shortfall of £42m. The consequence is Hampshire gets less funding from the central government and Hampshire council taxpayers are paying a bigger proportion for their policing than in areas where the weighting does not reduce police funding.

Mrs Drummond said: “Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary is a good, efficient force overseen by an able Police and Crime Commissioner but it is not receiving a fair funding settlement from the government and this is a longstanding concern.

“I welcome the Home Secretary indicating a consultation will take place soon to look at future police funding formulas. On behalf of Hampshire and the island, I will be making the case that any future formula needs to be fairer and reflect operationally what the force needs to do.”