Conservatives breaking police officer promise for Essex

The Conservative Government is failing to deliver the promised 449 more police officers for Essex.

Analysis of Home Office statistics by the Liberal Democrats has shown that Essex's officer numbers rose by only 169 in the last year.

A total of 270 extra officers have been recruited by Essex Police under the Government's campaign that started in September 2019.

Essex Police has so far recruited just 9 more officers per month under the scheme. To meet the Conservatives' own target of 449 by March 2023, that rate would have to increase to 12 per month over the next 15 months*.

Rayleigh Liberal Democrats have slammed the government for failing to keep their promise to communities, adding that there needs to be a return to full and proper community policing.

Responding to the figures, Chris Stanley, Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Downhall & Rawreth, said:

"People in Rayleigh are being let down and taken for granted by this Conservative Government. With so many local crimes going unsolved, we desperately need more police on our streets and in our communities.

"Liberal Democrats are calling for a return to proper community policing, where officers are visible, trusted, and known personally to local people."

"The Conservatives' pledge to boost police officer numbers looks set to become yet another of their broken promises. They are letting down victims of crime and our communities right across our area."

Notes to editors

The 'Police officer uplift, quarterly update to December 2021', published on 26 January 2022 by the Home Office