The amount people in the Humber region will pay on their council tax for local police has been agreed.
Humberside’s police and crime panel unanimously agreed to Humberside Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Jonathan Evison’s proposal to increase council tax for policing by £13.99 a year for Band D properties, in 2025/26. Mr Evison has said he proposed the increase “with reluctance”, and that even with the increase, Humberside Police will need “to make ambitious savings”.
The police force plans to maintain the same numbers of neighbourhood police officers and PCSOs. Commitments have also been made in a number of areas, including enhanced drone capability. Over 70 per cent of Humberside properties are council tax band C or lower, which means the policing increase on their bill will be lower than £13.99.
Mr Evison commented on proposing the council tax precept increase, saying: “It is with reluctance I propose to raise your council tax, especially with living costs remaining high, but I have a responsibility to keep your force efficient and effective and it is overwhelmingly the view of the public for me to maintain officer numbers, leaving me little option but to propose the increase in line with government recommendation. Even with the £13.99 increase, there will still be considerable monies drawn from reserves and the Force needing to make ambitious savings.”
He reiterated he had previously committed to not reducing police officer numbers in 2025/26. Humberside Police currently has its highest officer numbers since 2008.
The agreed precept increase follows a consultation on the rise, and the public’s policing priorities. It had over 650 responses. The top three policing priorities from the survey were:
- Neighbourhood Policing
- 999 and 101 faster response times
- Serious and organised crime e.g. gangs dealing drugs
The Humberside PCC asked temporary Chief Constable Judi Heaton her plans for improving the service, based on a £13.99 increase. She made a number of commitments, including:
- Renewed focus on visible policing to further build public confidence
- Maintenance of current neighbourhood police officer and Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) numbers
- Increased specialists to address fraud offences, and provide advice alongside online crime prevention tools
- Develop an enhanced drone capability for Humberside Police – to help improve response to a variety of crimes, including rural, and to missing people
- After a successful pilot in summer 2024 of Operation Coastline, a long-term commitment to an enhanced police presence in coastal resorts as a response to increased visitor numbers
- Proactive investment in the force’s automatic number plate recognition technology, to ensure enhanced coverage on roads in and out of the county
Mr Evison said the Government policing settlement has awarded £1.6m more to Humberside, though some of the cash will be ringfenced for more Neighbourhood Grants. “Even with this additional funding, we would still be required to use £5m from reserves to cover all policing requirements,” the PCC said.
He added, making reference also to the strong performance of Humberside Police’s control room: “We are continuing to see strong performance in crime detection, and we have a continued focus on supporting victims of crime.”
(Image: Image supplied by the Conservative Party)
The precepts, or charges, made by the likes of policing and fire and rescue, are only a small part of households’ overall council tax bills. The main element is decided on by the area’s local authority.
North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire councils will be deciding their budgets for next year on Thursday, February 20. North Lincolnshire Council is provisionally proposing a 4.99 per cent rise, made up of 2.99 per cent on core council tax, and two per cent on the adult social care precept. But the ruling Conservative administration frequently amends its budgets’ proposed council taxes at the meetings.
North East Lincolnshire Council has proposed a 3.98 per cent rise, made up of 1.98 per cent on core council tax, and two per cent on the adult social care precept.
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Original artice: https://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/all-about/scunthorpe
