Don't cut police anti-terror budget as threat grows, warns top officer

A senior police chief has criticised the government saying it wants to cut the money going to police to thwart terrorist plots.

Sara Thornton, chair of the National Police Chiefs’ Council, said the cuts come at a time of unprecedented threat, with Britain having suffered five attacks in the past six months, with more feared.

Thornton said: “In response to this significant threat, the government is increasing the money it spends on terrorism from £11.7bn to £15.1bn but only about £700m per annum is spent on policing. And the allocation of this budget for policing is set to be cut by 7.2% in the next three years. When the volume and nature of a threat is growing alarmingly, that is a real concern.”

Thornton’s comments came one week after an attempt to kill rush-hour commuters on a tube train in Parsons Green, west London. Thirty people were injured and deaths were avoided only because those behind the attack made errors constructing their bomb.

She said that terror attacks place extra demands not just on counter-terrorism officers but the whole policing system, which is already overstretched. After the bombing of the Manchester Arena in May that claimed 22 lives, three-quarters of the resources deployed in response came from everyday policing.

Thornton said: “With officer numbers at 1985 levels, crime up 10% in the last year and police work becoming ever more complex, this additional pressure is not sustainable. The current flat cash settlement for forces announced in 2015 is no longer enough.”

The Conservatives cut funding to police and officer numbers after they came into power in 2010 with the then home secretary, Theresa May, ignoring protests and claiming crime had fallen despite the cuts.

But recent attacks have made police chiefs more determined to fight back and press for extra funding, given what is expected to be an enduring and potentially escalating terrorist threat.

Thornton said: “Experts tell us that the spate of attacks in the UK and Europe are a shift not a spike in the threat, which will take 20 or 30 years to eliminate. This new normality necessitates an open-minded dialogue with government about how we respond; and our resources have got to be part of the conversation.”

Thornton, once described as the favourite police chief of David Cameron, said the funding squeeze risked damaging neighbourhood policing and the trust necessary for people to give officers information to catch terrorists. Thornton said: “Fewer officers and police community support officers will cut off the intelligence that is so crucial to preventing attacks. Withdrawal from communities risks undermining their trust in us at a time when we need people to have the confidence to share information with us.

“Police chiefs will do all they can to protect the public from terrorism. We will make choices about what we prioritise and where we invest. Some of these choices may be difficult and unpalatable to the public but we can make them if necessary.”

Thornton is a former chief constable of the Thames Valley force and was a candidate to be commissioner of the Metropolitan police, but lost out to Cressida Dick.

The Home Office said: “The government will do what it takes to keep families, communities and our country safe. That is why we are increasing funding for counter-terrorism by £3.4bn and the home secretary announced £24m in extra support for [counter-terrorism] policing in addition to the £707m already committed for this year.

“We have also protected overall police funding in real terms since 2015 and we are sensitive to the pressures on police forces across the country. We are engaging with them on the demands they are currently facing.”