New figures from the Home Office show that the number of officers serving the Lincolnshire police force has fallen by 22 in the space of a year. leaving it with it’s lowest number of officers ever.
The number of civilian staff serving the force has been cut by almost 80 in the same time period.
Figures show that all over the country the number of police officers in England and Wales has fallen to its lowest level in a decade.
There were o135,838 officers serving in the 43 forces at the end of September last year, which is over 6,000 fewer than the previous year and lower than at any point since 2002.
In March alone the number of officers declined by more than 3,000, the Home office data showed.
A further 423 officers were seconded to central services and 2,610 represented the British Transport Police.
Whilst officer numbers dropped by 4.2 per cent, the biggest cuts were those made to police staff which fell by 11.3 per cent, meaning a reduction in staff by almost 9,000.
Surrey is the only force in the country which has increased the numbers of it’s officers, with an increase of 5.2 per cent.
Lincolnshire’s success story is in the number of it’s Police community support officers which increased by 9 officers despite a national drop in officers of 5.5 per cent.
The policing minister, Nick Herbert, said after the police numbers were announced: “There were around 25,000 officers in backroom jobs, giving forces plenty of scope to save money while still protecting the frontline.
“In fact, forces are protecting neighbourhood policing, and the proportion of the police workforce on the frontline is rising.
“What matters most is how officers are deployed. By cutting bureaucracy and working more efficiently, police visibility on the streets can be improved.”
However, Labours Shadow Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper said that the cuts to police numbers are putting communities at risk.
She said: “The scale of the Tory-led Government’s cuts has led to the biggest fall in national police numbers in over a decade.”