§ 34. Mr. HawkinsTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to provide greater resources for policing in shire counties. [53544]
§ Mr. MichaelResources for the police are allocated by means of a needs-based formula. I have commissioned separate external research into the relative costs of policing sparsely populated rural areas and densely populated urban areas. The results of this research will be available by the time decisions are taken on the police funding settlement for 2000–01.