Durham Police and Crime Commissioner, Joy Allen, reacts to autumn statement.

Commissioner Allen has expressed her disappointment at the Chancellors autumn statement.

She said “everybody accepts that the country and households are in a difficult financial position. But I think that most people agree with me that a properly funded Police service is vital to keep people, communities, and businesses safe and support the economy, which a chancellor wants to do.

"I am therefore disappointed that he has decided not to give any more money to your local Police service, despite inflation now being over 11%. What this means is that we will struggle to balance our budgets going forward, because we are having to pay more money for energy and all our other services we buy. There is also little room to give our brave officers and staff a proper pay rise. Nor will we be receiving any money to help us pay for the costs of our technology, building or vehicles, all of which need replacing, as they get older.

"I will be writing to him to express my disappointment. That said I want to reassure the public that I will continue to deliver the best possible Police service to the people of Durham and Darlington, despite these challenges we face. Durham is a high performing Police force, and the public can still expect a high level of service, whilst those who choose to break the law can expect to be pursued.”

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