HAMPSHIRE Police Federation Chairman John Apter has a reasonable point to make when he argues that it is debatable whether the role of PCSOs should be ring fenced while numbers of serving police officers are being reduced in the county.
The public have welcomed the presence of PCSOs who are able to tackle public disorder issues and interact with communities.
But they will be concerned if actual Police numbers suffer to the point where crimes go undetected and the appearance is given that emergency calls cannot be responded to in the correct fashion.
The county’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Simon Hayes, has underscored the need for the PCSOs by insisting their numbers should not be reduced.
But so far, according to the Police Federation some 1,000 police officer posts have been axed.
Only a few weeks ago, the county’s Chief Constable took the unusual step of warning that further cuts in his budget will seriously damage the force’s ability to tackle crime.
The question would seem to be not whether the numbers of PCSOs should be cut, but how levels of serving officers can be maintained in these cash-strapped times.
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