Cuts 'won't hurt' police
Theresa May has insisted that the police will continue to operate effectively despite cuts to forces' budgets.
The Home Secretary said this evening: "Money can be taken out of police budgets without stopping them doing their jobs." Her comments followed calls from the Mayor of London and London Labour MPs that the Government reverse its position on cuts to the Metropolitan Police.
Harriet Harman met Home Office Minister James Brokenshire today to call for a moratorium on cuts to the London police force.
After the meeting Meg Hillier, MP for Hackney South & Shoreditch, said: “We have seen that the 16,000 police on the streets of London last night made a big difference in restoring calm. This shows police numbers do have an impact and is further evidence that the Tory-led Government needs to urgently rethink its plans to cut over 16,000 police officers across the country."
This morning, Boris Johnson said that the case for the Government's police cuts had "always been frail" and that
"this is not a time to think about making substantial cuts in police numbers".
Asked whether he disagreed with the position of the Prime Minister and the Home Secretary on police cuts, he said: "I think the answer is yes". The Home Office has issued a reply claiming that police "will still have the resources to do their important work at the end of the spending review period".