Would you back a 29p per week increase to support Hampshire Police?
Residents are being asked for their views
The Police and Crime Commissioner for Hampshire is asking the county's residents whether they would support an increase to the policing precept**** of the council tax.
Michael Lane is proposing a rise of up to 7.10%, which equates to 29p per week based on a Band D property.
The PCC says this would enable the force to build on what it has already achieved, take the fight to criminals and start to reduce crime.
It is hoped that continued investment into Hampshire Constabulary will help achieve:
- Early recruitment of 50 new police officers, in addition to the 156 officers from the nationally funded allocation
- Taking the fight to criminals, through targeted operational policing to take drugs and weapons off our streets
- Increasing prevention work further, including diverting young people away from crime
- In the last year, innovation has played a huge part in getting justice for murder victims such as Lucy McHugh and Louise Smith
- Continued investment in police officer wellbeing to improve productivity yet further, which means more police activity
In a previous survey, 58% of residents supported an increase if it was to happen.
WHERE DID MY MONEY GO LAST YEAR?
An increase was backed last year and the force say it helped make residents safer by funding:
- More call handlers to answer 999 and 101 calls with more calls being answered on time
- The recruitment of more police officers, more quickly
- Investment in officer wellbeing has kept sickness down, even in the face of COVID-19
- Investment in Country Watch enabling the force to take the fight to organised crime groups who go into farms and other rural communities to steal quad bikes and machinery to fuel and fund crime elsewhere in our force area
This year the government has given PCC's the flexibility to increase the policing precept up to £15 a year.
HAVE YOUR SAY
Residents are now being asked to make their views known about the increase and whether they would support it.
You can do so by answering a few questions on the Police and Crime Commissioner's website.
On the survey, PCC Michael Lane said:
"Keeping you all safer is clearly important and has been a priority for me over the last four years. Keeping you safer is partly funded through your local council tax. For the policing element of the council tax next year there are some options I am considering during these difficult and exceptional times.
"I need your support and your voice to inform my decisions which need to be made early next year. I would like your views on the level of increase in the policing element of the council tax 2021-22.
"The Government has given me flexibility to increase the policing precept by up to a maximum of £15 per year (based on Band D*). In Hampshire and the Isle of Wight 68% of households will pay less than this. A significant number of local residents have already told me they would support an increase in council tax to maintain police services."