Staffordshire Police want 5.12% council tax increase as taxpayers hit in pocket

Cash-strapped Staffordshire Police are facing financial challenges - after receiving 'extremely disappointing' Government funding. Tory Staffordshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Ben Adams says the Labour settlement does not cover the cost of the impending national insurance rise or pay awards.

It comes as Staffordshire Police want to increase council tax by 5.12 per cent in 2025/26. The commissioner is also in charge of Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service.

Mr Adams said: “In the last four to five years the budgets have been positive. The police officer numbers alone are up over 400 to over 2,000 in just four years so there are more officers and more people out in the community patrolling.

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“Disappointingly, I’m afraid, this budget round is going to be different. We’ve had a settlement from government that’s extremely disappointing. It doesn’t meet the national insurance increases, it doesn’t cover pay increases. It is some way off I can tell you on fire and rescue in particular where money has been redirected towards top-tier authorities, which is not helping the fire and rescue service.

“There is an assumption with a national endorsement that commissioners and others like myself set very high council tax precept. I regret to say your council tax is becoming a national tax. It is becoming the basis on which public services are funded and that’s not what it's about. It should be about local investment to improve and enhance the service: nationally-negotiated pay increases, national insurance increases should be covered by the government I think and anything that pretends otherwise is to miss the point.

“I regret to say that for the first time in my tenure as commissioner the budgets are under pressure and it will be very difficult for them not to affect service levels I’m afraid.”

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