Armed police deployed more in West Mercia last year than any other point in past decade
Armed police were deployed more often in West Mercia last year than any other point in the past decade, despite the number of officers carrying weapons falling over the period.
Rising violent crime and a continued threat of terrorism has meant that the number of armed operations in 2018-19 has risen by 96 per cent from the previous year.
And in Dyfed-Powys, the figures for armed police deployments soared by 230 per cent over the same period.
The number of armed officers in the West Mercia force has fallen from 137 in 2009 to 106 in 2019, even with the government's £143 million grant to increase the numbers and capacity of firearms units.
Even though call-outs have increased, the National Police Chiefs' Council said officers only fire weapons as a "last resort".
Simon Chesterman, the West Mercia spokesperson for armed policing, said: "A mark of the quality of training that armed officers receive is how infrequently they have to use their weapons, and it is a testament to the professionalism of our armed officers that only 0.06 per cent of armed deployments end with a firearm actually being discharged."
"There were only 13 occasions when officers pulled the trigger."
The Home Office figures show two-fifths of police forces in England and Wales saw a reduction in the number of armed police officers in their ranks over the last year, with five of them hitting a 10 year low.
Steve Hartshorn, the federation's lead on firearms, added: "We need to remain vigilant and support these officers knowing their training is of the highest standard in times of rising violent crime.
"There is still some way to go nationally in the firearms uplift as they can only recruit from an already diminished pool of officers and carrying a firearm isn't for everyone."
By Jessica Goddard
