§ Sir Norman FowlerTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if it is his policy to increase the strength of the police service; and if he will make a statement; [64405]
(2) if he will set out the strengths of each individual police force in England and Wales on (a) 1 May 1979, (b) 1 May 1997 and (c) the latest available date in 1998; and if he will make a statement; [64328]
(3) what arrangements he has made for collecting up-to-date figures on the strengths of individual police forces; at what frequency such information is required; and if he will make a statement; [64325]
(4) what assessment he has made of the impact of the financial settlement for the police on the strength of the police service; and if he will make a statement. [64327]
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§ Mr. BoatengInformation about police personnel numbers for individual forces in England and Wales is collected twice a year, at the end of March and September. Copies of the collated information are usually placed in the Library. Additionally, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary collects annually more detailed information on police personnel numbers and their deployment.
The Government will do all that they can to ensure that the police have adequate resources to play their key part in tackling crime and disorder. However, no responsible Government can give commitments about numbers of
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Police forces numbers—England and Wales Force 31 March 1979 31 March 1997 30 September 11998 Avon & Somerset 2,825 2,988.8 2,965.8 Bedfordshire 902 1,093.6 1,050.9 Cambridgeshire 1,064 1,302.0 1,285.9 Cheshire 1,778 2,045.5 2,054.9 City of London 829 858.9 792.5 Cleveland 1,334 1,459.3 1,453.2 Cumbria 1,056 1,143.5 1,153.0 Derbyshire 1,563 1,790.6 1,768.5 Devon & Cornwall 2,660 2,864.5 2,918.1 Dorset 1,128 1,284.0 1,292.7 Durham 1,312 1,460.5 1,559.1 Dyfed-Powys 910 1,004.5 1,013.3 Essex 2,461 2,960.7 2,903.1 Gloucestershire 1,076 1,132.6 1,090.9 Greater Manchester 6,419 6,921.6 6,890.2 Gwent 965 1,243.0 1,254.3 Hampshire 2,949 3,451.7 3,489.9 Hertfordshire 1,462 1,759.1 1,706.4 Humberside 1,849 2,045.0 2,003.4 Kent 2,724 3,260.1 3,200.2 Lancashire 3,097 3,247.5 3,245.1 Leicestershire 1,701 1,948.8 1,974.5 Lincolnshire 1,171 1,196.4 1,159.2 Merseyside 4,427 4,230.4 4,270.4 Metropolitan Police 22,214 26,677.3 26,106.3 Norfolk 1,223 1,431.6 1,409.6 North Wales 1,268 1,369.0 1,395.0 North Yorkshire 1,342 1,337.6 1,359.8 Northamptonshire 905 1,176.7 1,162.3 Northumbria 3,272 3,676.8 3,802.0 Nottinghamshire 2,117 2,323.4 2,269.0 South Wales 2,936 2,975.9 2,945.6 South Yorkshire 2,546 3,158.7 3,170.6 Staffordshire 1,978 2,211.1 2,271.1 Suffolk 1,064 1,179.7 1,179.7 Surrey 1,440 1,619.5 1,614.7 Sussex 2,758 3,084.9 2,923.9 Thames Valley 2,639 3,695.0 3,789.6 Warwickshire 841 925.9 923.5 West Mercia 1,743 2,040.2 2,024.2 West Midlands 5,981 7,112.7 7,215.3 West Yorkshire 4,727 5,208.8 5,065.7 Wiltshire 997 1,154.3 1,147.8 Total 109,653 125,051.3 124,271.1 1 Police numbers for 30 September 1998 are provisional police officers. Under legislation passed by the previous Government, this is a matter for chief constables, within the resources made available to them. The additional resources to be provided by the Government, totalling up to £1,24 billion over the next three years, coupled with the two per cent. efficiency targets which have been set for police authorities, will help to release more resources for front line policing.
The table provides information on police numbers at 31 March 1979, 31 March 1997 and 30 September 1998. The figures for 30 September 1998 are provisional and subject to validation.