Do you want to pay more for policing in Northumberland?

Northumbria's Police and Crime Commissioner is asking for the views of residents on the amount of council tax to be paid for local policing '“ the police precept.
Police and Crime Commissioner Vera BairdPolice and Crime Commissioner Vera Baird
Police and Crime Commissioner Vera Baird

The Force’s central funding for 2017/18 can be increased, but only if the police precept is raised by £5 per year for a Band D property – an extra 10p per week.

Email views to [email protected] by January 22. Residents must include their home address.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

In Northumbria, people living in a band D property currently pay £93.33 per year in council tax for their police service. Most residents have a band A property and for those the increase would be less than 7p a week (£3.33 for the full year).

Northumbria currently has the lowest police precept of all the 43 police forces in England and Wales, by a very long way due to historical factors.

Police and Crime Commissioner, Dame Vera Baird QC, said: “The Chief Constable and I are doing our very best to preserve the high standards of policing that we are used to here and we have looked at all options to save money to protect neighbourhood policing. This is truly becoming a struggle now with repeated government cuts.

“If the police precept is not increased by £5 per year for a band D property, it will have a further significant downward impact on what we can achieve. Yet again, the Government did not consult on whether the police precept should be increased. They are telling me that we must raise the precept or lose out.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“I am therefore asking if people would be content to pay a maximum increase of 10p a week on a Band D property to minimise further cuts. I want to hear what local residents think is best for Northumbria.”