Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent estimate her Department has made of the amount police forces are holding in (a) general and (b) total revenue reserves.

Total reserves were £1.8bn in 2016 and £2.1bn in 2015 and remain higher than the £1.4bn held in 2011.

The exact level of reserves is a matter for individual Police and Crime Commissioners, who have a legal duty to set balanced annual budgets and ensure they have adequate reserves.

Usable reserve levels that the police have built up over time must form a key part of police plans to reform to meet changing demands.