Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of police resources during the covid-19 outbreak.

The Government has been clear that it will provide police forces with the support they need to continue protecting the public and keeping communities safe through the coronavirus pandemic.

The Government is taking steps to mitigate forces’ COVID-19 related financial pressures. It is reimbursing all their additional expenditure on medical-grade personal protective equipment between 27 February and 27 July, and has launched an income loss recovery scheme for Police and Crime Commissioners to claim a proportion of their budgeted income on sales, fees and charges in 2020/21 lost due to the coronavirus.

On 8 October the Government announced an additional £30m for police forces in England and Wales to step up their enforcement of COVID-19 restrictions through the autumn and winter months.

The department continues to work closely with the policing sector to monitor and make decisions on their current and future funding needs.