Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) police officers, and (b) PSCOs funded by Government in each (i) police authority area, (ii) local authority area, and (iii) Welsh parliamentary constituency in each year for which information is available.

With the exception of funding for counter-terrorism policing, central Government funding to the police is provided to Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) on a non ring-fenced basis. Decisions about the allocation of police resources and deployment of officers, within the force area, are for Chief Constables and democratically accountable PCCs. They are responsible for ensuring the needs of the local community are met.

Before making decisions on the 2018/19 police funding settlement, I spoke to every police force in England and Wales to understand how demands on them were changing. This year, police funding will increase by £460m including a £280m increase in funding from precept. Most PCCs have set out plans to use this additional income to protect or enhance front line policing, and several are currently recruiting new officers.