Shropshire Star

Extra police for Shropshire as tax rise move to go ahead

More police officers will be recruited in Shropshire after the region's crime commissioner decided to press ahead with plans to raise council tax.

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West Mercia Police and Crime Commissioner John Campion

John Campion, Police and Crime Commissioner for West Mercia, had consulted the public on on his plans to increase the policing element of the council tax bill by an average of £1.60 a month.

Now Mr Campion's office has revealed that 75 per cent of people who responded to the consultation were in favour of the plan, which will see local budgets increased by £13 million.

Mr Campion said the move will see an extra 115 officers recruited in West Mercia, and will take the force to its highest officer numbers since 2012.

A spokesman for Mr Campion said that a series of measures are included in the budget "to ensure communities get the best return on that investment".

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He said that key improvements have been agreed with the chief constable around things such as emergency response times, police community visibility and unresourced incidents.

Mr Campion said: “Our communities have been clear that they support our police and want to see more officers tackling crime and keeping us safe. I have listened to that feedback and my budget delivers the resources the Chief Constable has told me he needs.”

“The public are trusting more of their hard earned money to me with a justified expectation that it will be used wisely and services will improve. I will work tirelessly to make sure they get best value and return for that investment.”

“This will not be a case of simply pouring more money into the force and hoping for the best. I have agreed some challenging targets with the chief constable and will follow those up in the months ahead to make sure our communities are getting the service they need and deserve.”

The commissioner's final budget proposals also include more money for tackling rural crime, CCTV schemes, road safety, and crime prevention schemes.

West Mercia’s Police and Crime Panel will scrutinise the plans next month.