UK’s biggest police force to axe 1,700 officers and staff despite funding boost
The Metropolitan Police will cut services including the Royal Parks Police.
The UK’s biggest police force will cut 1,700 officers and staff, despite receiving funding increases from central and local government.
The Metropolitan Police said it also needs to axe services including the Royal Parks Police, a decision described by one council leader as a “huge mistake”.
Scotland Yard admitted the move to plug the £260 million budget shortfall would put an “extraordinary stretch” on its staff.
A spokesperson for the force, which currently has more than 33,200 police officers and 11,300 staff, said: “We are very grateful for the additional funding we have received from the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) and the Home Office.
“While this new funding decreases our original funding gap from £450 million, it leaves us with a £260 million shortfall and we will have to make substantial tough choices, reducing our size by over 1,700 officers, staff and PCSOs and therefore our services.
