Council tax payments are set to rise to pay for a 3.5% actual phrases improve in funding for police forces subsequent yr, the federal government has introduced.
Council taxpayers in England and Wales will probably be requested to collectively pay an additional £329.8m to assist pay for the funding improve, policing minister Dame Diana Johnson informed MPs in a written assertion.
The 2025-26 police power settlement will quantity to £17.4bn, a rise of as much as £986.9m on the present yr.
Police and crime commissioners will probably be anticipated to make full use of their potential to boost the council tax principle to ship the total improve in police budgets.
It will add £14 a yr to the tax invoice for the typical Band D home, Dame Diana mentioned.
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She added growing the price of council tax to fund the rise “strikes the balance between protecting taxpayers and providing funding for police forces”.
Sir Keir Starmer’s spokesman mentioned it’s as much as councils to resolve in the event that they increase taxes or not.
The extra funding will cowl the prices of the pay rises given to officers by the federal government earlier this yr, in addition to the rise in employers’ nationwide insurance coverage contributions introduced in by the finances.
It can additionally pay for recruitment to assist meet the federal government’s neighbourhood policing guarantees.
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Dame Diana Johnson has mentioned councils might want to improve the tax they obtain for policing. File pic: PA
There will probably be a £1bn improve to £19.5bn for the whole quantity going into policing, which is an general 3% actual phrases rise.
Weeks after Labour gained the election, Chancellor Rachel Reeves agreed a 4.75% pay improve for law enforcement officials.
Within the October finances, she introduced the quantity employers contribute to nationwide insurance coverage would improve from 13.8% to fifteen% from April 2015.
Dwelling Secretary Yvette Cooper mentioned in November police forces can be “compensated” for the rise.
She additionally introduced an additional £500m of further funding will probably be given to neighbourhood policing, with that funding included within the funding improve.
Dame Diana mentioned: “Of the £986.9m of additional funding for police forces, I can confirm that £657.1m of this is an increase to government grants, which includes an increase in the core grants of £339m to ensure police forces are fully equipped to deliver our safer streets mission.
“This additionally consists of £230.3m to compensate territorial forces for the prices of the change to the employer nationwide insurance coverage contributions from 2025-26, and a further £100m to kickstart the primary part of 13,000 further law enforcement officials, PCSOs and particular constables into neighbourhood policing roles.
“This will provide policing with the funding required to tackle crime and keep communities safe.”
