§ Mr. BurnsTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many extra police officers could have been established in Essex in 1997–98 as a result of the extra funding made available to meet the target of 5,000 extra police officers in the United Kingdom over three years; and how many extra officers will actually be recruited in 1997–98 in Essex. [32340]
§ Mr. MichaelMinisters have no direct control over police numbers. Under legislation passed by the previous Government in 1994, it is for individual chief constables to determine the number of police officers in their force.
For 1997–98, Essex Police received £1.1 million in what was described by the previous Government as funding for extra officers. At the end of September 1997, the latest date for which figures are available, there were 2,944 officers in the force, 17 fewer than at 31 March 1997.