Policy paper

Covering letter to HASC chair, Yvette Cooper MP (accessible version)

Published 15 March 2019

This was published under the 2016 to 2019 May Conservative government

Home Office
2 Marsham Street
London
SW1P 4DF
Tel: 020 7035 4848
Fax: 020 7035 4745
www.homeoffice.gov.uk

Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP
Home Affairs Committee
Committee Office, House of Commons
London
SW1A 0AA

14 March 2019

Dear Yvette,

Government Response: Home Affairs Select Committee Policing for the future inquiry

Thank you for providing valuable scrutiny into the role of policing for the future and for setting out your conclusions and recommendations. I have now considered this in full and am pleased to enclose my response to the Home Affairs Select Committee’s Policing for the future inquiry.

Public safety is the number one priority of the Government. Ensuring that the British public can rely on an effective and resilient police service is central to that mission. We are keen to work with policing to support it in meeting the increasing demands and complexities it faces with a stretched front line and some capability gaps. That is why we are enabling an increase in funding for the police system of up to £970m. I have written to you separately setting out the details of the police funding settlement.

The environment we are policing is changing rapidly and we recognise that as Britain and crime changes, so must policing and at a faster rate than before. I believe that now is the time to focus on effectiveness because that is what the public are most concerned about. We need to improve both the response to existing demand and accelerate the ability of our police system to adapt to and keep up with changing demand.

We can do this by increasing the capacity and capabilities of the police, shifting towards more crime prevention, improving support to front line officers and building a smarter police system. The Home Office continues to work with police to ensure it can provide a strong service for the public and good value for the tax payer.

I am absolutely committed to tackling the violent crime blighting our communities. We have already provided significant investment in a programme of work through our Serious Violence Strategy including the new National County Lines Coordination Centre, the Offensive Weapons Bill and the £22m Early Intervention Youth Fund. In addition, in October I also announced a new long term £200m Youth Endowment Fund to invest in targeted prevention work, a consultation on a new statutory duty to underpin the multi-agency public health approach to tackling violent crime and an Independent Review of Drug Misuse.

However, it has become clear that we must go further in view of the continuing level of violence, especially after the fatal stabbings of teenagers we have seen in recent weeks. That is why the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in the Spring Statement on 13 March that there will be £100m additional funding in 2019/20 to boost funding for police and communities most impacted by serious violence. This includes £80m of new funding from the Treasury.

This builds on the roundtable I chaired with senior police officers on 6 March where I asked them about the resources they needed to fight violent crime. The majority of the investment will largely go towards supporting police forces, especially where violent crime is impacting the most, to take immediate action to suppress the violence we are seeing, to make our streets safer.

It is important that we recognise that greater law enforcement on its own will not reduce serious violence. We must continue to focus on prevention which is why this funding will also support the multi-agency “public health” approach through investment in multi-agency Violence Reduction Units.

I am committed to help shape a modern, skilled and efficient police service that is better able to respond to future challenges efficiently and effectively. That is why I have committed to prioritising police funding at the next Spending Review.

Yours sincerely,

Rt Hon Sajid Javid MP