Progressive Alliance calls on Police & Crime Commissioner to increase number of police in Milton Keynes

[Milton Keynes, 9 November] The Progressive Alliance which runs Milton Keynes City Council has called on the Police & Crime Commissioner for Thames Valley to increase the number of police officers in Milton Keynes.

Today Labour and Lib Dem Councillors have called on Conservative Police & Crime Commissioner for Thames Valley, Matthew Barber to allocate an additional 30 police officers to Milton Keynes.

Milton Keynes is the single biggest area in the Thames Valley area and having recently achieved city status it continues to grow every day. Progressive Alliance Councillors are urging the Police & Crime Commissioner to take action to ensure the local police service is properly resourced.

Recent figures published by Thames Valley Police revealed that 4,772 police officers are working in the force. Conservative Police & Crime Commissioner, Matthew Barber claimed that this is the largest the force has ever been.

An analysis of data from Thames Valley Police suggests the number of police officers per 100,000 residents has fallen from 221 in 2011 to 203 in 2022, meaning there are 18 less officers on the streets.

Progressive Alliance Councillors have said this isn't enough and more needs to be done to reflect the population size of Milton Keynes.

Liberal Democrat Councillor Robin Bradburn, who is Deputy Leader of the City Council and sits on the Thames Valley Police & Crime Panel, said:

"We're not seeing as many police officers in Milton Keynes and these figures explain why, as a growing city we need the Police & Crime Commissioner to act now and reassure us that officer numbers will increase.

"We want residents in Milton Keynes to feel safe and supported by our local police force, that's why we are calling on the Police & Crime Commissioner for more officers."