There are more police officers in England and Wales than ever before, new figures published by the government today confirm.
The government has delivered on its 2019 manifesto commitment to recruit 20,000 additional police officers by March 2023. This brings the total number to nearly 150,000 officers, more than 3,500 higher than the previous peak in 2010.
Police forces are now more representative of the diverse communities they serve, with over 53,000 female officers (35.5%) and over 12,000 (8.3%) from an ethnic minority background – both also at record highs. Whilst there is more progress to be made, thanks to the Police Uplift Programme there has been a 43% increase in the number of ethnic minority officers in England and Wales since the start of the recruitment drive.
Robbie Moore MP said:
It was fantastic to see this week that the Conservative Party have delivered on their manifesto pledge to put 20,000 more officers on our streets, including 974 extra police officers recruited in West Yorkshire since 2010.
Today’s news follows:
- Tough new laws on antisocial behaviour, which will see offenders clean up their crimes in jumpsuits
- The Police, Crime, Sentencing, and Courts Act, which gives police and courts the powers they need to tackle serious crime head on.
- The Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy backed by £100 million in funding to make our streets safer for women and girls.
However, it is once again extremely disappointing that the Labour Party have voted against this government’s tough new measures on crime at every opportunity.
In fact, Labour have voted 44 times to stop us introducing tougher penalties on violent offenders and other steps to keep this country safe. This includes voting against increasing police funding, the Police Reform (Social Responsibility) Act 2011, Terrorism Prevention & Investigation Measures Act 2011, Public Order Bill, PCSC Act, and Nationality and Borders Act.
WATCH my question to the Minister for Crime, Policing and Fire, Chris Philp, below.
