Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Police Officer Numbers

Monday 8 February 2021 · 4 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 3 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Government recruiting an additional 20,000 police officers by March 2023.
  • Police have already recruited an extra 6,620 officers as of 31 December.
  • Government commitment to recruit 20,000 police officers is described as very solid.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Peter Gibson
Policing & Resources
Context

No specific context provided, but it refers to a commitment by the government to increase police numbers.

Question

What steps her Department is taking to increase the number of police officers?

Answer from Kit Malthouse

This Government are recruiting an additional 20,000 police officers by March 2023—an unprecedented increase in the next three years that reflects the biggest recruitment drive in decades. I am pleased to tell the House that, as at 31 December, the police have recruited an extra 6,620 police officers—620 ahead of target and three months ahead of schedule.

Answered
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Q2 Alexander Stafford
Policing & Resources Community Security
Context

Reference to the increase in police numbers but concern over their visibility and accessibility.

Question

It is great to hear about the huge increase in police numbers, especially here in South Yorkshire, but what we really need is these new police to be visible and accessible. Does my hon. Friend agree that we need these new police officers to be front of house at Maltby police station, so that they can speak to residents and address their concerns, and to be established at a new base on Dinnington High Street, to clamp down on antisocial crime?

Answer from Kit Malthouse

While the decision on particular police stations is an operational matter for the chief constable, in consultation with the police and crime commissioner, my hon. Friend is quite right that an expansion in numbers on this scale means that all police forces should be reviewing their property strategy, to ensure that the presence he looks for in his constituency is felt across the country.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific visibility and accessibility commitments in Maltby and Dinnington were not addressed

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Q3 Martin Vickers Con Brigg and Immingham
Policing & Resources
Context

Acknowledgment of progress made by Humberside Police with increased officer numbers.

Question

Under the leadership of our chief constable Lee Freeman, Humberside police has made good progress from the position it was in a few years ago, and we have benefited from increased officer numbers. If we are to maintain that progress and meet the expectations of my constituents, we must continue to increase force numbers. Can my hon. Friend give an assurance that we will be able to further increase the number of officers in Humberside?

Answer from Kit Malthouse

The Government's commitment to the number of 20,000 is about as solid as it gets. It is the same as if the ravens were to leave the tower: if we fail to fulfil this promise, there will be fundamental problems and consequences for Government.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific assurance regarding future increases in Humberside was not provided

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Q4 Peter Gibson
Policing & Resources Justice & Courts
Context

Concern over the impact of a single custody suite plan in County Durham on local police presence.

Question

I welcome the brilliant work of my hon. Friend's Department, putting more bobbies on the beat in Darlington. Does he share my concern that those same officers will spend more time ferrying detainees across County Durham and less time on the beat if the plans of the acting police and crime commissioner to spend £21 million on a single custody suite for the whole county go ahead, robbing my constituency of its accessible custody suite? Does he agree that this decision should wait until after we have elected a new, democratic police and crime commissioner?

Answer from Kit Malthouse

When deciding about the disposition of custody suites in police stations across a particular force area, chiefs must have in mind the amount of time that will be spent by police officers in ferrying miscreants to and from those custody suites. I applaud him for pushing his temporary police and crime commissioner.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific impact on local police presence was not confirmed or denied directly

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