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London mayor commits £110 million for Met Police

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has committed to investing an additional £110 million into the Metropolitan Police in the next year, to help combat recent cuts and boost officer numbers. The force have had to find approximately £600 million of savings, with government funding having fallen by 40 per cent in real terms since 2011. This has contributed to the loss of a third of police staff posts, which are down from 14,330 to 9,985, as well as two-thirds of police community support officer (PSCO) posts, which are down from 4,607 to 1,591. The investment announced by Khan, which will see an increased contribution by City Hall, has been found by: a 5.1 per cent council tax increase, which will see £49 million spent on a two per cent police pay rise and a boost to officer numbers; business rates income to raise £55 million so the Metropolitan Police do not have to borrow the amount previously planned for investing in police buildings and new technology; leadng to a £3.3 million annual saving in interest payments that will be spent on improving support for those taken in by the police with mental health problems; and £5 million to be spent on recruiting additional police officers in the coming year. Khan, said: “The government have repeatedly refused to act on the funding crisis facing police services across Britain, so they have left me with no choice but to take the unusual step of increasing police funding from London business rates as well as council tax. However, tackling rising crime will also require us to be tough on the causes of crime. So in this Budget I have created a new £45 million Young Londoners Fund to support education, sport and cultural activities for the next three years – including for the most disadvantaged and vulnerable young people.” Gareth Bacon, chairman of the London Assembly Budget and Performance Committee, added: “When you add together the drip feed of announcements from the Mayor over the past few weeks – you get a total of £110 million of investment. The Budget & Performance Committee suggested that he use the flexibility of business rates and council tax income to fund the Met and it’s good to see him doing what the London Assembly asked over four months ago. The Met can’t just be funded by government, the Mayor needs to play his role in keeping Londoners safe.”

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