Police chiefs call for fairer funding
Police chiefs have urged national law and order bodies to help Lincolnshire get a fairer funding deal for its force, which they claim will suffer from a £57m shortfall over the next four financial years.
Chief Constable Paul Gibson and Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Marc Jones have jointly written to leaders in the Home Office, College of Policing, and His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services for help to address the imbalanced funding formula for policing in the county.
Their argument is that Lincolnshire Police has dealt with structural underfunding for many years and numerous attempts to resolve the issue have failed.
The central grant allocation to the Force has contributed to consistently being the lowest funded force in England and Wales. A recent independent report of Force finances showed extensive analysis in respect of the relative funding positions of the 43 forces in England and Wales, showing that Lincolnshire is the lowest funded force, but delivers low spend and provides value for money.
The medium-term financial plan has a deficit of £57m over the four-year period from 2024/25, against an annual budget of £168m.
Mr Gibson (pictured) said: “We have been stating our case for some time in relation to our untenable funding position. Both the PCC and I feel that the time has come to increase the momentum and ask the major stakeholders and decision makers in policing to come to the table and work with us to afford Lincolnshire Police a level of resourcing that is fair and allows us to deliver an effective service to our communities.
“Our joint and ultimate aim is to ensure that communities in Lincolnshire are protected. The future funding situation now threatens the future delivery of an acceptable service, which is why we have asked to formally engage with critical partners to make sure our position is fully understood and seek to achieve a collective responsibility to address the ongoing funding imbalance.”
PCC Marc Jones said: “For years, through careful management and use of our reserves, I have been able to keep the finances of Lincolnshire Police on a secure footing – while working hard in the background to get a resolution to generations of underfunding.
“Now we face a completely new and unprecedented financial challenge, exacerbated by changes in National Insurance and pay awards, and it needs a radical approach. This formal request is designed to get all the major organisations in the world of policing to engage in talks to resolve the issue and provide the people of Lincolnshire with the level of funding and resources they deserve.
“I stand with the Chief Constable in asking key stakeholders to sit round the table to help us find a solution.”