Prescott
pledges to fight police
cuts ahead
of election

The former Deputy Prime Minister, who is Labour’s candidate for the area in the upcoming Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) elections, says despite having the fourth highest number of recorded crimes in England and Wales, Humberside Police is currently planning to cut 21 per cent of its officers compared with a 10 per cent national average officer reduction.

Today as he launches his manifesto in Scunthorpe ahead of the November 15 elections, Lord Prescott is also promising no privatisation of frontline policing, specialist “rural-crime busting hit squads”, better support for victims of crime and piloting criminal justice centres to dispense justice in the community.

“Since the Coalition was elected in 2010, policing numbers have been cut by 200 in our area – and that will more than double,” he said.

“It’s an absolute disgrace.

“The police do a tough job and this is the way they are rewarded.”

He added: “When you compare Humberside Police nationally, there’s still a massive job to do.

“We have the fourth highest figure for recorded crimes in England and Wales – 78 offences per 1,000 population.

“For burglary we’re fourth highest, for victim-based crime we’re third, for sexual offences we’re second highest and for violence with injury offences we’re first.

“But Humberside Police is proposing axing 440 police officers – that’s a cut of 21 per cent compared with a 10 per cent average officer reduction across England and Wales. So we’ll (cut) twice as many police.

“That’s why we need a Plan B that will keep the community safer, keep bobbies on the beat, be smarter with our resources and allow the public to set their policing priorities.”

The former Deputy Prime Minister will be travelling East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire in a mini-bus – designed to be a mobile consultation surgery – where people can talk to him about their concerns about crime.

Lord Prescott will face competition to win next month’s election from the Conservative candidate Matthew Grove, Liberal Democrat Simone Butterworth and UKIP’s Godfrey Bloom. There are also three independent candidates, Paul Davison, Neil Eyre and Walter Sweeney, who will also be standing in the elections.