Agenda item

The Panel was asked to consider the:

(i)         West Mercia Police and Crime Commissioner’s (PCC’s) Proposed Budget 2022/23 and Medium Term Financial Plan 2022/23 – 2025/26;  and

(iii)       provide a report to the PCC on the proposed precept, including any recommendations, outlining whether it vetoed the precept or not.

The PCC gave a presentation to the Panel on his proposed budget, highlighting the following areas:

The proposed Budget overview was:

·         Budget of £260.485m (£16.1m on 21/22)

·         Central funding of £133.4m (£7.2m on 21/22)

·         Band D precept = £249.66 (£9.47 on 21/22)

·         Additional 125 officers (524 since 2016)

·         Investments in force modernisation

·         Extra £1m for prevention

·         Management of significant risks

The proposed Budget was in the context of the following risks and challenges:

·         Covid-19

·         The cost associated with Officer uplift

·         A major investigation

·         Maturing the approach to ensure long term financial stability

·         Increase in inflation including pay and energy

·         Continued modernisation and transformation

The Chief Constable outlined the strategic vision for West Mercia Police.  The key strategic priorities were: keeping communities safe, delivering excellent service and being a great place to work. The Panel were also advised about how the extra 125 Police Officers would be allocated.

The PCC went on to outline the Budget Consultation process and the proposed return on investment.

During the opportunity for questions, the following main points were made:

·         A Member expressed concern about one of the findings of the Consultation process, which was the public perception of the lack of police visibility in communities.  The PCC explained that he was reassured that operationally, there was a commitment to improve Police visibility but it would take time to achieve.

·         A Panel member suggested that historically police in Shrewsbury had been more visible than they were now, and that as a result petty crime was increasing.  The PCC acknowledged the need to continue to drive up improvement in the area of Police visibility and reminded members that there were named local Police Officers for each area and to assist with the promotion of the Safer Neighbourhood Teams, he would share posters with the Panel which they could use to help promote the Teams.

·         The PCC confirmed that the response to the Consultation was statistically valid.

·         Reference was made to the PCC’s current financial Reserve Strategy being less reliant on reserves, in contrast to the previous PCC’s financial Reserve Strategy.

·         The PCC acknowledged that in prioritising the Digital Strategy, it was also important to be inclusive and provide options for residents who were not digitally connected.

·         A Member questioned the significant investment already made in the additional 400 Police against tangible outcomes, highlighting that Police visibility and enabling quality investigations were still key priorities.  In response, the PCC advised that the investment being made was to reinforce the emergency response, enable quality investigations and more visible policing.  The PCC hoped that the Panel felt that there was sufficient rigour to the proposals and if not, invited Members to hold him to account.

·         In response to a members comment that perhaps there was a cultural issue around Police visibility that money wouldn’t solve, the Chief Constable explained that the investment in the Safer Neighbourhood Teams would allow more Police Officers to be out in the community and the Community Charter (which would be reviewed annually) also provided a very clear commitment to this.

·         The PCC assured the Panel that improving the public perception of Police visibility would take time, there needed to be visibility through the Safer Neighbourhood Teams for which he would continue to hold the Chief Constable to account.

·         A Member highlighted that he had supported the PCC’s Budget last year but didn’t feel that it had translated into better outcomes in the priorities that mattered most to residents ie improved road safety.  The PCC explained that some of the road safety issues were to do with road design/infrastructure not always enforcement.  The PCC provided assurance that more money had been invested in road safety and that the Police were able to respond to road traffic incidents.

·         It was noted that additional money had been provisionally allocated to reducing harm on the roads subject to a Business Case being provided by the Police to the PCC – a copy of the Business case was requested.

·         The PCC was asked if there was more funding available for Speed Indication Devices (SIDs) as they were very effective – the PCC referred to the Scheme detailed on the website, the link for which would be circulated to Panel Members.

·         In terms of the affordability of the PCC’s portion of the suggested Council Tax increase, the PCC confirmed that he had given serious consideration to the increase and the alternative options. He believed that an increase which equated to approximately 30p per week (for a Band D house) was affordable and also favourable when compared with other local authorities who were proposing larger increases.

·         A Member highlighted that there was often a reluctance for communities to report crime due to the perception that ‘nothing would be done about it’.  The PCC urged councillors encouraged communities to report crime and reiterated the role of the Safer Neighbourhood Teams in the communities.

·         A Member referred to the assumption that the Collection Fund would have an in-year Surplus for 2021/22 in the region of £0.700m which would be distributed to West Mercia in 2022/23 to offset the deficit from 2020/21.  The West Mercia Finance Manager confirmed that he was confident that there would be a surplus at the year-end and that it was not a decision that the Panel was required to make.

·         The PCC confirmed that the additional new Police Officer posts were in addition to existing Police Officer numbers.

·         The PCC explained that the additional investment in quality investigations to ensure that more offenders were brought to justice was due to an insufficient number of crimes not having the appropriate outcomes.

·         The 58% increase in homicide offences in West Mercia was a worrying trend, the PCC acknowledged the concern and explained that there was a significant amount of work happening in this area and reassured the Panel that West Mercia Police were responding appropriately.

·         A Member expressed concern about the proposed increase in the precept (almost to the maximum allowed).  The PCC explained that he was backing the Police Force with right amount of funding for which he could be held to account and in addition would hold the Chief Constable to account for.  West Mercia had the lowest Council Tax in the Country and he believed it was at the right level to achieve the priorities as set out.

·         A Member questioned the increase in the reserves, the PCC explained that the increase in reserves was due in the main to the cost of a major investigation.

·         The PCC explained that when he took on the role, the Service was heavily  reliant on reserves, whereas the current Strategy was less reliant on reserves and thus more sustainable. The previous reserves were used to invest in services such as IT. The Finance Manager confirmed that the increase in the Council Tax equated to 1.98%.

·         The PCC confirmed that following the split from the West Mercia Warwickshire Alliance, the budget savings predicted were being achieved. It was confirmed that from 1 October 2021, the arrangements for providing IT support to Warwickshire Police were finalised, this was expected to run until 2023 and the support was being paid for by Warwickshire.

·         The PCC confirmed that there was no funding of the main budget for reoccurring services from reserves.

The meeting was adjourned from 12.35pm-12.55pm.

The Vice-Chairman proposed that the proposed precept was vetoed.  On being put to a name vote, the proposal was defeated and therefore the Police and Crime Commissioners proposed precept would move forward.

As required by Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011, the Panel would formally make a report to the PCC on the proposed precept.