Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effect of trends in police numbers since 2010 on the ability of Hampshire Police to tackle crime in public spaces during the covid-19 outbreak.

Many factors impact on crime levels and the Home Office continues to monitor crime levels and officer numbers.

Our police forces face unprecedented challenges as they play the critical role of maintaining public order during this public health emergency.?Our frontline officers police by consent – and that is not changing. We are relying on their professional judgement to protect our communities, protect our NHS and save lives.

The Government is committed to ensuring the police have the resources they need?to keep themselves and the public safe at this crucial time, including 156 additional officers and a cash increase of £26.1m for Hampshire this year. We are working closely with the National Police Chiefs’ Council, the College of Policing and all forces, including Hampshire Police, to consider the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on recruitment.

We have already begun to look at how to adapt processes while maintaining the quality of recruitment. In response to COVID-19 measures, the College of Policing is rolling out a new Online Assessment Centre to allow safe assessment of candidates without the need for face to face contact. Hampshire Police has been one of the first forces to begin using the online assessment centre, beginning in May.

In addition, the College of Policing has issued emergency guidance to support forces in safety deploying newly recruited officers on accompanied patrol as quickly as possible to support operational resilience.