Lib Dem Hughes says local police job hampered by demands of the centre

12.00.00am UTC (GMT +0000) Thu 29th Apr 2004

Simon Hughes MP, Liberal Democrat candidate for Mayor of London, has spoken out against the huge demands made on local police forces in London by central policing needs. Figures released this week show that the number of officer days taken away from duties in London boroughs for central policing have increased from 108,921 to 155,314 in the last year.

Speaking to the Metropolitan Police Federation recently, Simon said:

"The loss of local police to central London is contributing to the low public perception of the force and the fear of crime. The Met has to confront this if it is to regain the respect and confidence of Londoners."

"For this to happen in the communities across London, there needs to be a Minimum Policing Guarantee that ensures there are eight uniformed officers in every ward, of every borough, by 2006."

For Greenwich, the average number of days annually that each police officer is called away to the centre has risen from 5.81 to 8.89 days in the last twelve months, the equivalent of losing over 5,000 days of policing in the borough.

Alex Feakes, Lib Dem GLA spokesman for Greenwich & Lewisham, commented:

"These demands on borough policing numbers undermine the confidence of Londoners in the ability of the local police force to tackle crime and disorder in their area.

"Simon Hughes' proposal for a Minimum Policing Guarantee of eight uniformed officers for every ward in Greenwich & Lewisham, which cannot be called away for central London duties, will provide reassurance for Greenwich's council tax payers that their policing needs are being met."