Police Reform White Paper

Debate between Shabana Mahmood and Jack Abbott

Monday 26th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Jack Abbott (Ipswich) (Lab/Co-op)]

I warmly welcome the Home Secretary’s statement. I would like to highlight two Government initiatives—Clear, Hold, Build and Operation Machinize—with our hard-working police force that are making a real difference in Ipswich. I can see parallels with some of the proposals that the Home Secretary has laid out for local policing. Although we received a welcome multimillion pound uplift in police funding, we have been majorly short-changed over the years, as one of the worst funded local authorities for more than a decade. Can the Home Secretary assure me that these changes will result in extra resources that we desperately need to continue the good progress that we have made in Ipswich and Suffolk?

[Shabana Mahmood]

We will say more about the funding settlement for the coming year in just a few days’ time, but my hon. Friend will know—and I hope he will welcome —that every force, wherever they are in the country, will see a real-terms increase in funding. We propose to deal with the wider questions about the police funding formula once we have the review and we know what the recommendations are for regional forces going forward. That will be the appropriate time to review the police funding formula, which we will do.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Shabana Mahmood and Jack Abbott

Tuesday 5th November 2024 Commons Chamber

[Shabana Mahmood]

I am shocked to hear about the extent of the delay in the case of the right hon. Gentleman’s constituent. He is welcome to write to me with the specific details and I will ensure he gets a meeting with the relevant Minister.

[Jack Abbott (Ipswich) (Lab/Co-op)]

T3. Earlier this year, it was reported that over 1,000 cases at Ipswich Crown court are outstanding. At the last count, each case was taking an average of 249 days to be dealt with, with 144 cases unresolved for two years or more. What can the Minister do to reassure my constituents, as we look to clear the terrible backlog left by the previous Government?