Nia Griffith MP, Shadow Wales Office Minister, commenting on Dyfed Powys Police’s proposed restructuring, has said:
“On top of the 150 jobs already lost in Dyfed-Powys Police since the election, the latest news of a loss of 118 further posts shows the extent of the Tory-led Government’s cuts to our police service. The Home Secretary claimed that cuts to police budgets of 20 per cent wouldn’t harm the front-line but she and the Prime Minister are completely out of touch.
It is communities like those in Dyfed-Powys that will pay the price for the scale and pace of these cuts as police officer and back office jobs are lost. In spite of the best efforts by police officers, with some 118 posts going, these cuts are bound to increase the pressure on the remaining personnel and affect on the level of service to the public. Yet again, we see the effects of the Tory government in Westminster prioritising tax cuts for millionaires over maintaining vital public services.
Across England and Wales as a whole we’ve seen the impact in the number of referrals for serious crimes falling. The number of rape, domestic violence and child abuse cases reported to the police is going up, the number of cases that the police put forward for prosecution is plummeting as the service is being hollowed out. The Tory-led Government is taking too many risks with the fight against crime. The Home Secretary urgently needs to change course, before it is too late.”