Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Police Funding Formula

Monday 20 March 2023 · 3 questions

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

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 3 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The Government are committed to reviewing the outdated police funding formula.
  • The consultation will cover topics such as crime demand drivers and regional cost differences.
  • Forensic science provision is critically important and continually discussed with policing colleagues.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Andrew Selous Con
Policing & Resources
Context

The police funding formula has been criticised for being unfair and out-of-date, with some forces receiving less funding than others despite higher crime rates or costs.

Question

What recent progress her Department has made on reviewing the police funding formula. The formula is considered to be outdated and unfair, leading to significant disparities in funding across different regions.

Answer from Chris Philp

I thank my hon. Friend for raising this important topic. The Government are committed to reviewing the police funding formula, in which there are some unfairnesses. The police funding formula is historical and somewhat out of date, and we intend to consult on it in the near future.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Did not specify any specific progress made or timeline for the review

How: Under Review

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Q2 Andrew Selous Con
Policing & Resources Crime & Law Enforcement
Context

There is ongoing debate about how to fairly distribute police funding based on factors such as crime rates, population size, and local costs.

Question

Will the new funding formula be crime based, rather than just population based? Will it be implemented immediately for the winners, to stop the gross unfairness of the current formula to forces such as Bedfordshire?

Answer from Chris Philp

The intended consultation will cover topics such as the demand drivers of crime and how we should take account of the different costs of providing a police service in different parts of the country. In the meantime, Bedfordshire's excellent police and crime commissioner, Festus Akinbusoye, is working incredibly hard to spend his budget effectively and to drive down crime in Bedfordshire.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Did not address whether the formula will be implemented immediately for winners

How: Under Review

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Q3 Barry Sheerman Lab
Policing & Resources Science & Technology
Context

Police forces are experiencing difficulties in obtaining adequate forensic science support, which is a concern for maintaining effective criminal investigations.

Question

Is the Minister aware that many police forces are struggling to obtain good forensic science facilities? Is he further aware that the Westminster commission on forensic science, with which I am involved, is deeply concerned about the instability of forensic science in our country?

Answer from Chris Philp

Forensic science is critically important, as the hon. Gentleman says. The Home Office is continually discussing forensic science provision with our colleagues in the policing family to make sure there is adequate provision. We are always looking at the funding arrangements and the range of providers, so I can assure him that this topic is the subject of continual scrutiny.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Did not provide specific commitments or timelines for improvement in forensic science facilities

How: Continual Scrutiny

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