§ Mr. LlwydTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what criteria apply to the quantification of the Rural Policing Fund; and if he will make a statement. [150020]
§ Ms BlearsI have been asked to reply.
External research carried out in 1998 demonstrated that additional annual costs of around £30 million associated with more sparsely populated police authority areas, were not reflected in the general police funding formula.
The Rural Policing Fund was introduced during 2000–01, when a specific grant of £15million was made available for policing in more rural areas, without reducing grant to the predominantly urban forces. £30 million has subsequently been made available annually to the 31 forces with the most widespread populations. The Fund has always been distributed according to the relative average sparsity of population.