Latest news with #PaulGibson
BBC News
2 days ago
- Politics
- BBC News
Lincolnshire Police chief constable Paul Gibson warns of job cuts
The chief constable of Lincolnshire Police has warned 400 staff and officer jobs could be cut if the force cannot secure extra funding by comes after Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced the government's Spending Review, which includes a 2.3% real terms yearly funding increase for policing in England and Constable Paul Gibson said this was not enough for Lincolnshire and would leave the force facing a deficit of almost £70m. He said he had begun negotiations with the Home Reeves told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme she did not "accept" the need for cuts to police jobs. Speaking during a hotseat with BBC Radio Lincolnshire presenter Frances Finn, Mr Gibson said the Home Office had recognised Lincolnshire as a "significant outlier" in terms of funding."If we don't get more money by October, then, unfortunately, I have to start consultation to reduce our organisation significantly," he Gibson said cuts to officer numbers could result in reductions to services that were "hugely important" to communities, including neighbourhood, roads and rural policing and crime prevention said: "I have to make sure that I balance the budget, and if I can't do that then I have to reduce resources, which obviously will be felt within the communities across our great county."The chief constable said he had a meeting planned with Policing Minister Dame Diana Johnson for early July, and he would be "pitching for more money"."I'm as optimistic as I can be, but I can't guarantee money will come along," he April, Lincolnshire Police announced previous planned cuts to 400 jobs had been delayed due to a new £5.7m government funding speaking on BBC Radio Lincolnshire, Mr Gibson said this was "one-off money" to provide "stability" for six months. 'Working hard' A report by His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue, released in May, rated Lincolnshire Police inadequate at investigating crime, responding to the public and managing offenders and Gibson said he appreciated the findings of the report would be "concerning" for residents, but he said funding had a "massive impact" on the level of service the force could said: "It's [the report] not as good as I wanted it to be, that's absolutely clear, and there's no doubt that there are things we need to do better. I completely accept that."We're working incredibly hard in the background to make sure we are investigating crimes better, supervising criminal investigations better, meeting the requirements of victims better." Caller Chris Fairweather, from Old Leake, near Boston, told the chief constable she had not been visited by officers after reporting a garage break in at her said tools and equipment had been stolen, but she had received a letter from police a week later to say the case had been Gibson said it was "just not possible" to visit the scene of every crime, and officers had to work out the likelihood of solving a said: "Finance, whether we like it or not, has a major impact upon what you're able to do, in terms of the quality of service you can deliver."Later in the discussion, Mr Gibson said: "I know that people are concerned about policing – they always want more, quite understandably."But I also need to make sure that I balance that with my staff, who are operating in difficult circumstances."They get assaulted quite frequently. I write to them, I speak to them, almost daily, in terms of someone who's been punched, kicked, spat at."The Home Office has been approached for comment. Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.
BBC News
14-05-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
'Serious concern' over Lincolnshire Police crime investigations
Lincolnshire Police has been rated inadequate at investigating crime, responding to the public and managing offenders and Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue said it had "serious concerns" and the leadership and management of the force was inadequate.A report said the force was too slow to respond to calls and "failing to support victims" and called for urgent improvements. Chief Constable Paul Gibson said he accepted the report's findings, but said the force was "starting to see some real improvements". Some of the report's findings were released in December last year, and the force was moved into an enhanced level of full report, published on Wednesday, gave more detail and said the way the force investigates crime was of "serious concern" and must be "urgently improved".Although it does "a good job" of investigating the most serious crimes, "the force isn't allocating investigations to appropriately trained officers and staff who have the right skills and experience", according to the report. Inspectors found officers only met incident response targets in 52.6% of cases, which meant the force was "missing opportunities to safeguard the public and reduce crime".They said in the year ending March 2024, black people were nearly five times more likely to be stopped and searched or subjected to force than white people. The report said there were "gaps" in the records to explain finances, the report said Lincolnshire Police's savings plan did not address several areas of inefficiency. It added "these inefficiencies are increasing its operating costs and worsening its budget deficit". Overall, the report said it could not "underestimate how much improvement is needed", but it acknowledged there had been some improvements including increased staffing in the control Gibson told BBC Radio Lincolnshire he understood "why the public would be worried"."What I would say is, in terms of response, we've taken a laser focus to this," he said."We are now responding quicker, allocating people quicker. We are assessing victims needs in over 90% of the cases. "So those figures that you will see in that report are starting to change. "This will take a bit of time but I'm happy with the progress." Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.
BBC News
15-04-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Lincolnshire Police job cuts delay after government funding boost
Planned cuts at Lincolnshire Police have been delayed following a new government funding agreement, the force has had previously warned 400 staff and officers could be cut by 2028 due to a £14m budget the new agreement, the government will provide £5.7m in special grants and upfront Jones, the Lincolnshire Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC), said the development was "welcome news" but said more work was needed to address long-term funding. Jones added: "This package is certainly going to stave off the worst of the cuts in the short-term and give the chief constable and I more time to address the long-term funding issues."This package is exceptionally positive but there is still much work to be done to ensure Lincolnshire Police is providing the most effective service possible for the funding we do have available."I would not want the public misled into thinking this matter is resolved or that the latest government announcement on 'additional' neighbourhood policing will change anything for us – it won't."According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Chief Constable Paul Gibson will halt plans for redundancies and talks on the force's financial future will continue after the government's spending Gibson said: "I am pleased that the Policing Minister [Diane Johnson] has acknowledged our challenging and unique position and has agreed an initial financial support package."It remains our ambition to secure a long-term, sustainable agreement that addresses our chronic underfunding. There is more work to do."In August, the PCC launched a judicial review against the Home Office over the way it calculates how much money is allocated to police forces. Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.
The Independent
31-01-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Extra money a ‘tiny percentage' of what is needed, police chief warns
A police chief has warned his force may have to cut 400 officers and staff after the Government's announcement of an extra £100 million for neighbourhood policing was branded a 'tiny percentage' of what they needed. Lincolnshire Police Chief Constable Paul Gibson said a £14 million funding gap for 2025/6 is still forecast after a first assessment of the final settlement set out on Friday. The Government confirmed it will invest an extra £100 million into neighbourhood policing, adding to £100 million announced in December for England and Wales to put 13,000 more police officers on the streets by 2029. The £200 million, which is part of the Police Funding Settlement published on Friday, is about 'visible, accessible policing', Downing Street said. Policing minister Dame Diana Johnson said she was 'not pretending' that police forces were not facing funding challenges, and decisions would need to be made locally on how many officers to have. Mr Gibson said: 'There may be some potential extra money to support the neighbourhood policing pledge. We welcome any additional funding that is allocated to policing, but unfortunately this will be a tiny percentage of what we need. 'There is a simple and stark message: without urgent and significant funding, I will need to reduce our organisation by over 400 officers and staff.' He added he had cancelled police recruitment and would need to start reducing police staff numbers 'significantly and immediately', while also working with Home Office officials to address the situation. Dame Diana said the Government was 'starting from a difficult position' after 14 years under the Conservatives, but around £1 billion of additional funding is going to forces from April and she is meeting with struggling police forces. 'Those police forces, and I'm very well aware of Essex and Lincolnshire, those police forces that are struggling, we want to work with them. We want to make this work,' she told LBC. Essex Police said this week it needed 'urgent action' to address a budget shortfall and was looking at axing all police community support officers and reducing the number of staff. On Friday, Essex Police said the extra £100 million would go 'some way' to bridging its £5.3 million funding gap. 'We've lobbied hard for this funding to be increased through the consultation period. The decision we announced earlier this week has created concern and has resulted in change,' Roger Hirst, the Essex Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, said. The new investment for more officers is scheduled for the next financial year and each police force will set out plans to use it to increase patrols by early spring. The Metropolitan Police chief Sir Mark Rowley on Thursday confirmed the country's biggest police force will not make cuts to neighbourhood policing, despite a 'stretch in the system'. Meanwhile, Police and Crime Commissioner for Gloucestershire, Chris Nelson, said he was pleased the Government had listened to concerns in the '11th hour', which will help with neighbourhood policing while budget remains stretched. Reacting to the cash boost on Friday, National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) chairman Chief Constable Gavin Stephens welcomed the investment in neighbourhood policing, saying it is a 'vital part of how we engage with our communities, building trust and confidence locally'. It comes after ministers set out a provisional 3.5% real-terms increase in funding for forces with a £986.9 million boost in December. That fell short of the £1.3 billion which chief constables said police forces would need to plug funding gaps over the next two years. NPCC lead for finance, Chief Constable Paul Sanford, said then that the funding settlement presented 'real challenges' for policing, and would 'inevitably lead to cuts across forces'. Total funding to police forces will be up to £17.5 billion next year under the final settlement, an increase of up to £1.1 billion on the previous year. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the investment in neighbourhood policing marked a 'major turning point' for policing. Ms Cooper added: 'Restoring local policing will not happen overnight, but this funding boost will get more officers into our town centres and rural areas.' Dame Diana also said more officers on the ground would help to target antisocial behaviour and 'record-breaking' levels of shoplifting. The funding will be split between every force in England and Wales and is for them to decide how to spend, Downing Street said. The 13,000 neighbourhood officers could be newly recruited or they could be 'currently serving officers being moved into neighbourhood roles', a No 10 spokesman said. Asked if the Prime Minister had a preference for new recruitment or shifting officers into neighbourhood roles, he said: 'I think this is about visible, accessible policing and officers on the streets for people to turn to and rely on if they feel unsafe.' The Conservatives accused Labour of having 'failed to stump up the funding needed to stop massive cuts to frontline services'. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said: 'Our police services face £118 million shortfall, which puts over 1,800 police jobs at risk.'
BBC News
31-01-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Lincolnshire Police warns it could cut 200 officers
Lincolnshire Police said it could cut 200 officers by 2028 as it looks to cover a £14m budget force said, following the government's funding settlement for policing announcement, it was looking to reduce police officer numbers to 1, added it was exploring "several difficult decisions" which include a reduction in police staff Constable Paul Gibson said the force would also cancel its upcoming police officer intake for March this year. "We are facing some very difficult decisions and cancelling the next police officer intake is just the first of what is likely to be many to come," said Mr Gibson."I do not underestimate the impact this is likely to have had on those planning to join in March but, sadly, we have been left with no other option because of the financial constraints imposed upon us."He stressed no definitive decisions had been made and further options would be based on "what best protects and keeps communities in Lincolnshire safe". The Lincolnshire police and crime commissioner Marc Jones said the force faced an "unprecedented" financial challenge."For many years our county force has been structurally underfunded," Mr Jones said."The gaps have been plugged with effective financial management and reserves that is no longer enough. The gap is simply too great."Savings amounting to £14m this year alone, rising to £20m in coming years, must be found and that makes it impossible for the force to continue in its current form."I continue to try everything from lobbying to legal action to get this issue resolved with government. We all deserve better from Westminster."Asked on the Today programme about forces making cuts, Policing Minister Dame Diana Johnson said she would not "pretend it's not challenging for police forces" but overall an "extra £1.1bn was going" into to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.
