Oral Answers to Questions Debate

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Department: Home Office

Oral Answers to Questions

Rachel Reeves Excerpts
Monday 12th September 2011

(13 years, 1 month ago)

Commons Chamber
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Nick Smith Portrait Nick Smith (Blaenau Gwent) (Lab)
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1. What estimate she has made of the change in the number of police officers during the comprehensive spending review period.

Rachel Reeves Portrait Rachel Reeves (Leeds West) (Lab)
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13. What her policy is on the future size of the police officer work force.

Baroness May of Maidenhead Portrait The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Mrs Theresa May)
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With permission, may I briefly update the House in relation to the appointment of the new Metropolitan Police Commissioner? The Mayor of London and I conducted interviews with the candidates this morning, and I expect to make a recommendation to the palace later today.

We have set a challenging but manageable funding settlement for the police service. It is a matter for the chief constable and the police authority in each force to determine the number of police officers that are deployed within the available resource.

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Rachel Reeves Portrait Rachel Reeves
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With savage cuts to West Yorkshire police, including 750 fewer police officers and up to 1,500 fewer support staff, how does the Home Secretary think that tackling burglary in Leeds will be improved over the next few years?

Baroness May of Maidenhead Portrait Mrs May
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In relation to policing, we are ensuring not only that police have the tools and powers that they need to deal with issues out on the street, but that they are freed up from a lot of the bureaucracy that was introduced by the previous Government, which kept too many police officers behind desks and not out on the streets.