Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help support the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of police officers in Greater Manchester.

The Government is committed to ensuring police forces are supported to effectively tackle crime.

We are clear that visible policing is essential to restoring public confidence in the police.

For 2025-26, £376.8 million will be available to forces to maintain officer numbers. Of this £270.1m is ringfenced which Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) will be able to access by demonstrating that they have maintained their officer numbers.

Greater Manchester Police has also been allocated £11,556,938 in funding for 2025-26 to kickstart the increase of neighbourhood policing personnel as part of this Government's plan to deliver a total increase of 13,000 across England and Wales by the end of this Parliament. Our approach to delivery in 2025-26, which will be year 1 of a 4-year programme, is designed to deliver an initial increase to the neighbourhood policing workforce in a manner that is flexible, and can be adapted to the local context and varied crime demands.