PCC pledges support to Wiltshire Council

Police and Crime Commissioner for Wiltshire and Swindon Angus Macpherson has pledged his support to Wiltshire Council after it revealed a significant budget shortfall due to the COVID19 pandemic.

Leader of the council, Councillor Philip Whitehead said the Government needed to make more funds available to local authorities as they face significant challenges ahead.

Angus said: "I sympathise with the predicament that Wiltshire Council and a large number of other local authorities will no doubt find themselves in.

"Having developed close relationships with our local authorities over many years, I know first-hand that they are lean and efficient organisations having been through years of austerity.

"However, this is not just a local authority specific issue - we must all acknowledge that we share a large number of services here in Wiltshire and any financial pressure put on any one of our partners has the potential to impact on these services and negatively affect our communities."

Angus is also seeking further reassurance from the Government that agreed funds for police forces and the uplift in police officer numbers will not be affected by the COVID pandemic.

He said: "Everyone knows that I have been lobbying the Government for years for fairer funding for police forces, especially Wiltshire which has one of the lowest settlements in the county.

"The current Government was working towards rectifying the historic underfunding of the police service and I do want reassurance that this will not slip due to the public health emergency we have been battling.

"I call on the Government to reassure me, Wiltshire Police and all our communities in Wiltshire that we will get what is right and fair to continue to provide a great service across the County."