§ Mr. CongdonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he intends to announce the allocations of police grant for individual police authorities in 1996–97 and the allocations of the funding for 5,000 extra officers announced by the Prime Minister; and if he will make a statement on the impact of these allocations on the overall funding of police authorities in that year. [3944]
§ Mr. HowardI have today put a copy of my proposals for the allocation of police grant for 1996–97 in the Library. I intend to implement these proposals subject to consideration of any representations I receive about them.
The police service has indicated its support in principle for the continued distribution of police grant in accordance with a needs-based formula, and I am therefore proposing to continue to allocate the greater part of police grant according to the police funding formula.
I am, however, proposing a number of detailed changes to the formula in response to the representations which have been made to me about the working of the formula. The principal changes which I am proposing are:
890Wan increase in the share of available funding allocated by the formula's pensions indicator from 9 per cent. to 12.3 per cent.;a reduction in the share of available funding allocated by the formula's establishment indicator from 50 to 40 per cent.; and,the introduction into the formula of a sparsity indicator to allocate 0.5 per cent. of available funding.My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has announced funding for 5,000 extra police officers over the public expenditure survey period and an additional £20 million of police grant has been made available in 1996–97. I am proposing to allocate the £20 million according to the daytime and resident populations of each police force area.
I am also aware of, and share, public concern that policing levels generally should be maintained. I therefore propose to apply an additional rule to police grant allocations which would ensure that each police authority other than the Metropolitan police can receive 3 per cent. more funding in 1996–97 than it could have received in 1995–96. For the Metropolitan police, the cap on its reserves will be lifted allowing it to carry forward the substantial extra reserves it has accumulated during 1995–96.
The 3 per cent. additional rule, and the extra freedom to carry forward reserves for the Metropolitan police, are both in addition to the £20 million which has been made available in relation to the Prime Minister's announcement concerning additional officers.
Other police funding proposals within the local government finance system are being announced today by my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for the Environment and for Wales.
The table shows by police force area the total effect of all these proposals for 1996–97. It also shows the allocations approved by Parliament for 1995–96.
891W
£ Million Police Force area 1995–96 funding1 1996–97 funding1 English Shire Forces Avon and Somerset 147.8 154.5 Bedfordshire 55.4 57.3 Cambridgeshire 62.7 66.4 Cheshire 93.1 98.4 Cleveland 707 73.3 Cumbria 54.3 57.1 Derbyshire 88.3 92.4 Devon and Cornwall 146.5 153.1 Dorset 62.6 64.7 Durham 68.0 71.4 Essex 146.7 151.8 Gloucestershire 56.4 58.5 Hampshire 169.1 175.1 Hertfordshire 87.0 89.9 Humberside 98.1 103.1 Kent 158.1 163.8 Lancashire 155.5 163.2 Leicestershire 89.9 94.8 Lincolnshire 57.1 59.0 Norfolk 71.2 75.9 Northamptonshire 55.8 58.3 North Yorkshire 66.7 69.7 Nottinghamshire 110.2 115.2 Staffordshire 101.2 108.8 Suffolk 58.5 61.7 Surrey 85.1 88.0 Sussex 145.8 150.9 Thames Valley 192.8 202.2 Warwickshire 47.7 49.3 West Mercia 97.8 103.4 Wiltshire 58.7 60.7 English Metropolitan Forces Greater Manchester 327.1 342.2
£ Million Police Force area 1995–96 funding1 1996–97 funding1 Merseyside 215.0 221.8 Northumbria 179.6 188.2 South Yorkshire 147.2 154.6 West Midlands 329.3 343.7 West Yorkshire 249.8 260.6 London Forces Metropolitan Police2 1,628.7 1,648.4 City of London3 57.3 59.1 English Total 6,092.6 6,310.5 Welsh Forces Dyfed-Powys 46.3 48.5 Gwent4 60.1 62.7 North Wales 66.0 69.3 South Wales4 143.4 150.9 Welsh total 315.8 331.4 Total 6,408.4 6,641.9 1 Rounded to the nearest £10,000.2 Figure for the Metropolitan police does not include funding allocated to receiver under the other services block SSA for school crossing patrols, magistrates courts and the probation service. 1 Figure for the City does not include capital and other services block SSAs which are allocated to the Common Council of the City of London as a whole in respect of all its functions.4 Figures for South Wales and Gwent police authorities have been adjusted to show what they would have received in 1995–96 had the transfer of the Rhymney valley from south Wales to Gwent, due to take effect on 1 April 1996, been effective for 1995–96. These adjustments enable valid comparisons to be made between these forces' allocations for 1995–96 and 1996–97.