Precept Increase Supported
Dorset's Police and Crime Panel agree to support precept increase.
Dorset Police and Crime Commissioner, David Sidwick, has today confirmed the policing element of the council tax will increase by 83p* a month (*based on a Band D property) for the next financial year.
At its meeting this morning (Thursday, 3 February), Dorset’s Police and Crime Panel, the scrutiny body which holds the PCC to account, unanimously supported the PCC’s proposal to increase the precept.
An online survey held across December and January, supported the PCC’s proposal to raise the precept. Of the 1,662 respondents, 67% supported the proposal to raise the precept and 77% agreed that Dorset Police needed more funding.
David Sidwick said: “I have spent a long time talking with the Chief Constable about precept investment and we are both agreed that the focus will be aligned to the priorities of my Police and Crime Plan – a plan which mirrors what the people of Dorset told me they wanted me to do when I became Police and Crime Commissioner.”
The agreed increase will be spent on strengthening neighbourhood policing; improving customer service – 101 and emergency response; investing in a new County Lines taskforce; increasing capability into protecting and safeguarding children; putting more resources into tackling violence against women and girls; expanding the Rural Crime Team and investing in digital evidence, improving crime investigation capability and victim care.
Dorset Police Chief Constable Scott Chilton said: “I thank the PCC and the Police and Crime Panel for their support in increasing the precept by £10 which will allow us to continue in our ambition to make our Force area the safest in the country.
“I am personally committed to making Dorset a hostile place for criminals and those involved in harming our communities. This investment, combined with Uplift funding enabling more police officers on the streets of Dorset, will see Dorset Police in a strong position to deliver the PCC’s Police and Crime Plan. This means being tough on crime, keeping people safe and putting victims first will be at the core of our policing service to our communities.”
Throughout the next financial year, the PCC will monitor the impact that this investment has had and updates on this progress will be published on his website.